Aftermath
by lady-warrioress
Summary: Prowl's brought back to life. But not in the way anyone expected. Now he must get used to his new body with a little help from Sari Sumdac. requested fic
1. Chapter 1

**Just one brief piece of Info: They are on Cybertron at the beginning of this story. I just had to say that so you wouldn't be confused. **

CHAPTER 1 Techno-organic

His eyes opened in a cramped, dark place. He tried to move but found couldn't go far. He trapped. There wasn't much air in this tight little place and he found he couldn't breath. Panic rose inside him and he cried out, smacking at something in front of him that clanged loudly. At least his arms could move, even though everything else seemed to be wired down. Spurred on by this realization, he hit the thing again and again, his panic increasing. Something wasn't right. Why was he stuck inside such a small place? Why couldn't he breath? What was going _on_?

He smacked at the metal thing again, using more force. He had to get out. Now!

This time it gave way, popping open so quickly that he didn't have time to brace himself. He fell out of the cramp space and hit the floor, landing on his hands and knees.

He stayed in that position for a long moment, breathing deep gasps of air.

Wait!

Breathing?

_Robots don't breath!_

_Then why am I breathing?_

That's when he got a good look at his hand. It didn't look like he how remembered it. It wasn't even the right color and it felt funny. He could see his fingers, five digits covered in a lose tanned substance. The rest of his hand was covered in something soft and black. Like material. He moved the hand, brushing his fingers against each other. They made a strange scraping noise and the black substance wrinkled when he moved it as well, like it wasn't even a part of him. But, when he looked at the rest of his arm it too was covered by the same soft, black material.

_What?_

A scream yanked him out of his thoughts.

Startled he raised his head. Across the room a girl with red hair, dark skin and wearing a yellow and orange dress stood with her hands slapped against her cheeks. Her bright blue eyes were wide with horror. He knew this girl.

"Sari?" he said.

"Wh-who are you?" she demanded. "And how do you know my name?"

"It's me, Sari," he said. "Prowl."

"You are _not_!" she exclaimed, sounding angry. "Prowl's _dead_! I attended his _funeral_!"

_Funeral? But if I'm dead... How am I? _he looked at his hand again. _**What **__am I?_

This didn't make any sense. If he was dead why was he here now and why did he feel so strange? What was going on? He could not comprehend it. This was beyond his understanding.

Sari stayed where she was, studying this person. He claimed to be Prowl did he _couldn't_ be Prowl. Prowl was a giant robot. This guy wasn't a robot and he looked nothing like the hologram Prowl used either. She'd gotten so used to seeing Prowl's human hologram that she figured that's what he would look like as a human, if he ever got turned into a human. "Look, mister," she said, still keeping her distance. "I don't know who you are or how you got here but pretending to be one of my best friends, especially one that died, is just plain distasteful." she opened her hands, exposing her wires. She formed a blue orb of energy in her hands. "You take it back right now!"

Prowl's eyes widened. She was actually going to shoot at him?! "Wait, Sari!" he shouted, scrambling to his feet. "I really _am_ Prowl!"

"You are not!" she fired at him. "Stop lying!"

He dived to the floor, avoiding the blast. "Sari, if I'm not Prowl, how do I know your name?"

"_Everyone_ knows my name," she shot back, firing another bolt.

He hit the floor once more, trying to come up with a way to prove that he was really Prowl. Nothing came to mind. She fired at him again and he dived out of the way but part of the orb hit him in the arm. He cried out, surprised at the jolt of pain that shot through him. He hit the floor, gripping the wounded spot, cursing under his breath. Why was it so_ painful_? He'd felt pain as a robot but not like _this_!

He looked up to see Sari charging up another shot. He didn't want her to fire at him again and desperately tried to think of a way to prove that he was who he said he was. Then it came to him. "I sneaked into your father's tower and found out you were a protoform," he said, quickly ducking to avoid another hit. He didn't want to feel that kind of pain again any time soon. "I'm the one that told you you were part robot." When she still didn't look convinced he shouted. "I was the very first robot you used your key to repair!"

She paused. "Okay," she said, panting. "If you know that much; what did Prowl say after I repaired him and he sat up? What are the first words he ever said to me."

"That is quite the cure," he said instantly.

Her expression changed. She closed her hands, snuffing out the light. "Prowl?" she said, the expression on her face changing to something much less hostile. "You really are Prowl."

"Yes," he replied, getting to his feet, and still gripping his arm. It hurt but not as much as it had.

She gaped. "But.... but how and _why," _she stammered.

He shook his head. "I don't know." he looked at his hands, once again taking in the tanned skin and the black and gold clothing. "I wish I did."

She walked toward him. Her expression still one of disbelief. She reached out her hand and touched his face. His skin felt soft against her own. It wasn't a hologram. This really _was_ Prowl. "You really are here," she said, rubbing his face. Part of her hand brushed his hair, it was soft too, almost like a newborns. Her face was full of wonder, as if she was looking at something she had never seen before. After a moment, she took her hand away and let it fall to her side. "But _how_? How can you be here and like this? What happened when you died?"

He thought for a moment. He tried to remember but drew a blank. After the incident on the top of Sumdac Tower there was a void. He shook his head. "I don't remember," he answered. "I only remember a bright light and, after that, nothing."

That's when he caught his reflection in the shiny surface of the door of the thing he'd fallen out of. What he saw looked nothing like how he'd looked in Soundwave's dreamworld or how he would imagine himself to look. He looked much younger and was clean shaven. He had short black hair, blue eyes that glowed in the dim light, and a tanned face, not as tanned as Sari's but close. He was wearing a black turtle neck black tunic like top with gold designs sewn into the black material, similar to the patterns he had as a robot. He also had on a pair of sand colored pants with gold bands going down the sides. When he turned his attention back to his face he noticed the gold colored band tried around his head and the pair of blue tinted glasses that were similar in design to his visor. He reached out and touched the shiny surface._ Is this me? I mean really __**me**__?!_

It was only then that he realized he'd fallen out of a stasis pod. _Whaa? A stasis pod?!_

He looked back at Sari. She was watching him with interest. "Sari?" he said.

She met his eyes. "Yes?"

He started to say something but the wound in his arm lashed out with another flash of pain. He cried out and grabbed it, nearly falling over. "Prowl!" Sari exclaimed, touching his shoulder worriedly. "Are you all right?"

"No, I'm not all right," he ground out. "This wound you gave me hurts like the Pit!"

"I'm sorry!" she said, sincerely. She reached out to touch his arm. "Let me see."

He jerked away from her touch. "No!" He looked up at her and said through clenched teeth. "Just take me to Ratchet. Where is he?"

* * *

Ratchet was in another area of the building. It was only two days after Prowl's body had been buried but they were all still on Cybertron. Ultra Magnus had come back online a few days before Prowl's funeral and had asked Optimus and his crew give him a briefing on what had happened since he had been in a coma. The story had taken a long time to tell and they wound up staying longer than they'd planned.

Of course Ultra Magnus wanted them all to stay on the planet but Optimus had told him that there were still a few things left undone on Earth and asked for permission to return to resolve them. Magnus had willingly given him the authorization saying, since he'd done so much, he didn't have to ask him.

Because of this, the medic was busy in his old office updating his equipment. He knew what Optimus had meant but "unresolved issues" so he had to be ready for any kind of trouble. He was in no mood for any strange surprises so when Sari came into the room followed by a young man he'd never seen before he nearly dropped his tools. "What in Cybertron?" he exclaimed, staring at the young man. "Who is that and how did he get here?"

"Ratchet," Sari said, looking up at him then back at the young man. She grasped the man's arm, pulling him forward so the medic could get a better look at him. The young man seemed to wince as she drug him forward. "This is Prowl."

The medic gaped at her. "Prowl?!" he exclaimed. "Have you slipped a gear, Sari? Prowl's dead! We buried his body!"

"I know," she replied. "But this really _is_ Prowl! Only... you know, smaller and uh.. human."

"Human?" Ratchet knelt down for a better look. The young man stared up at him through strangely shaped, blue tinted glasses. He didn't look a thing like Prowl but there was something about the expression he was making and his eyes...

"Do you mind?" the man asked in a voice that sounded familiar.

Ratchet blinked. This human's mannerisms were familiar too and so was that voice. But... _It __**couldn't **__be. _

Sari saw the doubt written on his face and insisted. "It _is _Prowl!"

"How can you be sure of that?" he asked her.

Sari looked at Prowl. He looked up at Ratchet. "When you tried to use the key to repair Bumblebee and it didn't work I told you you didn't need a key to do what you were already capable of doing," he winced again then said. "You shouldn't have been so hard on yourself."

Now recognition dawned on the medic's face. Nobody else had been around to witness that scene except Prowl. "It_ is _you," he said. He knelt down again, studying him better. "But how did you-"

"I don't know," the cyber ninja replied. He stepped closer to him. "I need you to do something for me."

"What?"

Prowl rubbed his arm, his face scrunching up in pain, and looked away. "Could you.. um... scan me.. and uh.. repair me?"

"Scan you? Repair you? What for?"

The look he gave him said it should have been obvious. "My resurrection, so to speak ,,scared Sari," he explained, looking down at his arm. "She attacked me and kind of damaged my arm..."

"Oh," now the medic understood what he meant. He'd been wondering why Prowl had been favoring the left arm the way he had. Ratchet put out his hand. "Come on up."

Both humans, or sort of humans, stepped onto his palm. He stood up and let them get off on the examining table. He turned and picked up one of his tools, powering it up. He then turned back to them and saw that Prowl had moved the black substance further up his arm, exposing the tanned skin underneath and a large red burn mark. Ratchet walked over to him and gently grasped the arm between two fingers. He studied the wound a moment. "It doesn't look too serious," he told him. "I don't think it will stay for very long. But I'll see what I can do for it after I scan the rest of you."

Prowl nodded and allowed the medic to run the scanner over his body. The image that appeared on the screen nearly made Ratchet drop it. "Ma.. ma.. what?!"

They looked at him. "What is it?" Prowl asked.

Ratchet looked down at him with optics so big that they nearly took up his entire face. "How in the name of Cybertron did you manage to become _that_?!"

"What?" Prowl demanded, getting impatient. "Become what?"

The medic pointed at Sari. "One of _those_."

The cyber ninja looked at Sari, confusion written on his face. "One of..." then he realized what he was saying. "Techno organic?!"

Sari didn't look surprised at all. "I could have told you that," she said, folding her arms and giving him a look. "It was kind of obvious. You should have figured it out yourself." then, before he could protest, she added. "After all; I did see you fall out of a _stasis pod_."

Prowl was still having a hard time figuring out how it even happened. "But.. what... how.. I?"

Ratchet looked curiously at Sari. "Did you say _stasis pod_?"

She nodded. "You know those three protoforms we've been keeping here?" she asked him. "Well I went to look at them and I heard this yelling and banging. When I entered the room I found him." she pointed at Prowl. "On the floor in front of an open pod. Incidentally the pod protofrom was gone or should I say-" she poked Prowl's arm, the uninjured one. "it's right_ here_."

"That doesn't explain how he could have come out of one or how he wound up like that in the first place," Ratchet protested.

Sari shrugged. "Maybe it was the protoform I touched back on the moon," she suggested. "Maybe it scanned my DNA or something..."

Neither Autobot could help her come up with a better answer. Ratchet could see that this discussion was only making Prowl more confused. He kept looking at himself and then back toward the protoform room with a lost look on his face. "We can figure that out later," he told her. "Why don't you both uh... let the others know that a special someone came here...?"

"Okay," she said. "Sure." she smiled at Prowl. "Won't they be surprised?" She grasped his hand and started to lead him away.

"But first," Ratchet said before they got more than two steps. "Let me see what I can do about that damaged arm."

* * *

They were surprised all right. Bumblebee nearly fell out of his chair when Sari came in with Prowl following closely behind. "Whoa!" he exclaimed, staring at the Prowl. "Who is _that?_ and how did he get _here_?_"_

Sari looked at the young man. "Prowl. How he got here is a little harder to explain."

"That's _not _Prowl," Bee protested, frowning at her. "Prowl's a robot like me and he's dead."

"This _is _Prowl!" she insisted.

Prowl was starting to grow tired of this game of are too, are not. "Still stating the obvious I see," he said.

Bumblebee stared at him. "Prowl?"

"Yes, I am Prowl," the young man said, sounding annoyed.

"But I.. you," Bee started gesturing. "But you're so.... _What_? I'm dreaming, aren't I? Or this is some kind of cheap trick you cooked up to psych me out." He looked at Sari. "Come on. Where is it?"

She didn't know what he was talking about. "Where's _what_?"

"The holoprojector," he said, looking around. "Where are you hiding it?"

"I'm _not_ a hologram!" Prowl shouted. "If I was a hologram could I do _this_?" He kicked Bee hard in the foot.

"Yeowch!" Bee exclaimed, grabbing his foot and hopping around.

Prowl hmphed and folded his arms. "Believe I'm real _now_?"

Sari giggled.

"Well hologram's can't do _that_," Bee admitted, rubbing his sore foot. He looked at his friend again. "But how'd you end up like _that_?"

Prowl and Sari looked at each other. "We don't know." they said together, like they'd been practicing saying saying that fraze.

Just then Optimus and Bulkhead came into the room. "What's all that yelling for, Bumblebee?" Prime wanted to know.

Bumblebee ran over to him, nearly crawling up his chest with excitement. "Look who's with Sari!" he said, his face holding a very weird expression. It looked halfway between happy and freaked out and it made Optimus nervous. "It's Prowl! He's alive!"

"Prowl?!" Optimus looked startled. He looked around, as if expecting to see the cyber ninja come walking into the room. "Where?"

"Right _there_!" Bee said, pointing toward the floor. "He's right there!"

Optimus and Bulkhead looked down at the floor. Sari smiled and waved at them. Beside her stood a young man with clothes on that had a familiar gold pattern on the front. "Who?" he pointed at the young man. "_Him_?"

"Yes, _him_!" Bee exclaimed, looking exasperated at Prime's slowness. "Who _else_ would I have been talking about?"

Bulkhead stared at the young man for a moment then burst out laughing. "That's not Prowl," he said, smacking Bumblebee on the back, nearly knocking him over. "He's not tall enough. Quite kidding around."

"I'm not kidding around!" Bee protested. "It's really Prowl!"

Optimus looked doubtful. "That can't be possible. Prowl's dead."

"I'm _not _dead!" the young man shouted.

Bulkhead stopped laughing and looked back at the young man. Come to think of it, now that he got a better look, the human's stance looked very familiar and so did his voice. "What?"

"I am not dead," Prowl repeated himself, walking over to the other robots. "I'm here." he spread his arms and looked at himself. "This is me, only different."

"But how is that _possible_?" Optimus asked him. He was having a hard time letting it all sink in. "I mean you died by giving up your spark. How could you possibly be back and like _that_?"

"I don't know," Prowl said, shaking his head. "Maybe the AllSpark decided to give me a second chance...."

Nobody else could think of a better answer so they didn't argue. Instead Optimus asked. "You didn't happen to fall out of a stasis pod did you?"

"Uh.. well.. yes," Prowl said, looking over at Sari. She met his gaze and shrugged. "I woke up in one and fought my way out of it." he saw the look on Optimus face. "Why? What's that face for."

"Uh ..oh..."

Suddenly Sentinel Prime came charging into their quarters. His optics were wide and he looked freaked out. "Somebody's stolen one of the protoforms!" he shouted. "I bet it was a Decepticon!" he looked at Optimus accusingly. "I _knew _you didn't catch them all!"

"Calm down, Sentinel," the other Prime said, putting up his hands. "Nobody has stolen any protoforms."

"How can you _say_ that?!" Sentinel demanded. "There's only two left in the-" that's when he noticed Prowl. "Who let that _organic_ in here?!"

"Sari?" Bumblebee said, not knowing who he was referring to. "She's _allowed _in here!"

Sentinel shot him a look. "Not Sari!" he corrected. "The organic standing _next _to her!"

Bumblebee looked at Prowl. "You mean Prowl?" he said.

"Don't play games with me," Sentinel snapped. "We just buried that poor excuse for an Autobot days ago!"

Optimus started giving him a weird look. "Sentinel," he started to say.

"_What_?" Sentinel snapped, glaring at him.

"I wouldn't be saying that out loud if I were you," he said.

"Why not?" the dark blue robot demanded. "It's _true_!"

"I beg your pardon!" another voice broke in.

Sentinel looked around. "Who said that?"

"I did!"

He looked down at the young man. Prowl had his hands clenched into tight fists at his sides and his face was a mask of pent up furry. "I'll have you know that I am _not_ a poor excuse for an Autobot," he said, trying to speak in a calm voice but it came out tight. He pointed a finger in the dark blue robot's face. "You shouldn't be insulting somebody who gave their life to save a city when all you did was cheat to catch Decepticons by hiring a no good bounty hunter."

"How do you know about that?" Sentinel demanded.

Prowl folded his arms. "I'm sure you can figure that out for yourself."

Sentinel lost him temper. "I won't stand here and be insulted by a filthy organic!"

Prowl stared over the top of his glasses with eyes like blue ice crystals. "The stand somewhere else and I'll insult you there," he said.

Sentinel sputtered something, flabbergasted and at a loss for words then turned on his heal and marched out of the room. Everyone looked at Prow with mouths hanging open.

"Wow," Bumblebee said, looking impressed. "I never expected that from _you_."

Now Prowl was sorry for what he'd said. "I shouldn't have said anything," he realized. _So why did I?_

"No," Sari protested. "You had every right to say something."

"Sari is right," Optimus agreed. "Sentinel's words were out of line. He had no right to say that about you after all you did."

He still looked uncertain. He could see their point but... "I guess you're right." _Why do I get the feeling that my reaction was manipulated by my new form? _His new body seemed to have heightened his emotions. It felt weird.

"So anyway," Optimus said, changing the subject when he noticed Prowl still looked upset. "Why don't you tell us what happened and how you wound up the way you are now?"

"Yeah," Bumblebee agreed. "Because this is just weird."

Prowl sighed and nodded. "All right." it was better than dwelling on what had just happened. "But it's not very exciting."

_A/N_

_When I began this, it was only a collection of art pictures in my deviantart gallery. I got the inspiration from a short gift story a friend of mine wrote for me after Prowl died to make me feel better. So while I drew up the pictures I started getting comments that I should make this into a fanfic. After much deliberation and a lot of hesitation; here it is. The start of a different way of bringing our favorite ninja back to life. Enjoy. _


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

When Prowl finished telling his comrades everything he could remember about what happened, from the time of his reawakening to when he and Sari went to see Ratchet, he asked. "Do any of you have an idea on what might have happened?"

None of them did. They were just as confused as he was. Nothing like this had ever happened before. Of course Optimus Prime had been brought back to life but Sari had used her key to do it and he'd come back in his own body. This was something completely new.

"Maybe it was one of those freak accidents," Bumblebee suggested. "Maybe your spark became depolarized and like uh.... went into the wrong body... or something."

"That doesn't explain how I would up like _this_," Prowl protested, looking at himself again. "Even _if _my spark did enter the wrong body my form would have become like my old one. I wouldn't have wound up this way."

"Well maybe Sari's right," Optimus said, trying to think of an easy explanation. "Maybe your spark entered the protoform she touched and like mixed with her DNA and made you look like that... or something.."

That answer didn't make Prowl feel any better. He looked at Sari who smiled nervously, shrugging and raising her hands in a helpless gesture. "I don't see why it would have done that," he said doubtfully. _How did my spark not enter the Well anyway? Or what if it did and got rejected? _those thoughts were making things worse but he didn't voice them.

"Well if it did does that mean that you're now related to Sari?" Bumblebee questioned, getting a sudden case of inspiration. "Since it scanned her DNA and all."

Sari actually looked thrilled at the prospect. "Wow! Instant brother!" she exclaimed, putting her arm around his waist. "I always _wanted_ a brother."

"I don't think it works that way, Sari," Optimus told her, looking doubtful.

"Why not?" she demanded, letting Prowl go and facing the red and blue Autobot with her hands on her hips. "It worked that way with my father."

"This is a bit different," he tried to explain. "Just because it scanned your father's DNA doesn't make you any more related to him than Prowl is to you. Your body is kind of like an alternate mode. Aside from the gender your protoform had programmed into it everything else isn't all that important."

"So you're saying Prowl might have wound up with a female protoform and came out a girl?" Bee snickered at the idea.

Prowl shot him a glare, offended by the suggestion.

"No I am _not_." Optimus corrected, annoyed. "I am saying that even_ if _the protoform _did _scan Sari's DNA she and Prowl are _not _related."

"Oh," Bee looked down at Sari. "I guess this means you don't have a new brother."

"Rats." she looked at him. "He would have made a good brother."

"Knock it off!" Prowl ordered, not liking this topic at all.

"Ah, we're just kidding," Bee said, poking his head with a finger. "Where's your sense of humor?"

The poking nearly knocked Prowl over. He raised his hand and batted the invading digit away. ""It died with the rest of my body," he answered, dryly.

"Ah don't be like that," Bee said, looking annoyed. "We weren't being serious."

The cyber ninja looked away, pushing his glasses back up his nose when they slipped. "Whatever."

"Okay enough," Optimus finally stepped in. "You're not helping at all, Bumblebee neither are you Sari."

"I was _kidding_!" the yellow mecha protested.

"Kidding or not it wasn't very nice," Prime told him, folding his arms like he always did when he was annoyed or didn't like how a topic was going. "Besides; we've got an even _worse_ problem now."

"What's that?"

"How are we going to explain this? Sentinel is sure to tell Ultra Magnus about the missing protoform _and_ about Prowl. This probably won't end well if Magnus believes his side of the story." Optimus looked down at Prowl. "You're going to have to explain what happened and try to prove that you are who you say you are."

Prowl's face fell. "Ultra Magnus doesn't know me well," he said. "How am I going to prove anything to him?"

"I don't know but you'll think of something." he started out of the room. "Come on. Let's get this over with before Sentinel blows it out of proportion."

* * *

Ultra Magnus wasn't expecting any reports or visits from Sentinel Prime so when the dark blue Autobot burst into his office he didn't know what to think. He didn't even have to ask what this was about because Sentinel was already talking.

"Ultra Magnus, sir!" the dark blue robot shouted, rushing up to the desk. "We have a problem!"

Magnus looked up from the forms he was filling out. His expression said more than his words. "What is it now?" he asked. _I hope this isn't another false alarm._

Sentinel slammed his hands down on the top of the desk, knocking over a figurine of the Cybertronain god Primus. "One of the three protoforms Optimus and his crew brought back is missing," he told him.

Now _that_ brought out some kind of reaction. "Missing?" he said. "What do you mean?"

"It's gone!" Sentinel replied. "I went into the protoform chamber where we had them stored and saw that one of the stasis pods was open. When I looked inside I discovered that the protoform that was supposed to be inside it is missing."

Magnus reached over and gently righted the figure of Primus. "Have you asked Optimus Prime about it?" he questioned.

"Yes, and he said he didn't steal it," Sentinel replied.

"Why would you think he would have?" Magnus wanted to know, giving him a look. "He has no reason to steal a protoform."

The dark blue Autobot realized he'd misspoken. "Wait, no I'm sorry, sir, I messed up there," he corrected himself. "I mean he doesn't know what _happened_ to it or that's what I got from the answer he gave me." Sentinel rubbed his chin, thoughtfully. "The explanation I got for what happened to it was kind of weird."

Magnus eyed him warily. "How do you mean _weird_?"

"That leads me to the other reason I'm here," he said. "It seems an organic is loose in the building."

Ultra Magnus knew of only one organic in the building. "If you mean the human child I already discussed that with you; she is allowed in here," he told him. "I gave her authorization."

"I don't mean the freak," Sentinel corrected. "There is _another_ organic loose."

Magnus optics widened. "Another one? What do you mean?"

"Like I said. There's another organic in the building. This ones male. He's got like this weird black and gold and tanned clothing on and is wearing a pair of those weird things organics call glasses. He's got a real mouth on him too," Sentinel added. "He disrespected me."

Magnus didn't much care about the disrespect part. He only cared about the fact that there was a second organic around that nobody had told him about. How did it get there? Who let it in? He stood up. "Show me this organic," he ordered.

Sentinel was more than willing to.

* * *

"Do we really have to do this now?"

"Yes," Optimus replied, looking down at Prowl. He was walking beside Optimus as the group headed toward Ultra Magnus office. For somebody who was now the smallest Autobot in the group he was keeping up just fine. "If we don't do it now it'll only make things worse."

"Plus, if we _don't_, some organiphobic Autobot might try to step on you," Sari added. She was speaking from experience. The first day they'd arrived there Cliffjumper had freaked out when he saw her remove her helmet and tried to squash her.

Prowl hadn't thought of that. "Good point," he conceded.

She smiled at him. "Don't worry. I'm sure Magnus won't arrest you or anything," she assured him. "Just explain what happened. He's a smart bot. I'm sure he'll understand."

Prowl's face said he didn't believe that. "I hope so."

Because Sentinel and Magnus were on their way to the Autobot's quarters neither had to reach their destinations because they met each other halfway. Sentinel wasn't watching where he was going and walked right into Bulkhead. He bounced off the taller robots chest and hit the floor. Bulkhead was barely fazed by what happened and just looked down at him. "Looks like we won't have to find them after all," he said, looking over at Optimus. "They just walked right into me."

"Ugh, watch where you're going, you clumsy oaf," Sentinel snapped, getting to his feet. When he was standing he noticed Prowl standing by Optimus who had stepped around Bulkhead to stand in front. "There he is, sir!" he yelled pointing down at the young man and looking at Ultra Magnus to make sure he saw it too. "There's that filthy invading organic."

"Prowl is _not _a filthy organic, you big jerk!" Sari shouted, swinging her fists at him. "He's an awesome ninja!"

Sentinel stepped back to avoid being touched. "Keep your hands to yourself, you freak!" he snapped.

"Enough, Sentinel Prime," Ultra Magnus ordered, putting his hand on the dark blue robot's shoulder and stepping around him. He looked down at Prowl. "Who is this?" his question was directed at Optimus.

The other Prime knelt down and let Prowl climb into his hand. He stood up and turned to face the older robot. "This is Prowl," he answered.

Magnus blinked. "Optimus Prime, you should know more than anyone else that Prowl is dead," he told him. "We entombed his body two days ago."

"I know," Optimus said. "But this really _is _Prowl. Only.. you know, different and uh... not as robotic and smaller..."

The older robot looked at the young man in Optimus hand. The young man's color scheme looked familiar. Though he hadn't had much interaction with Prowl he remembered him as a somewhat quiet and respectful robot. He also knew who Prowl's master was because they'd been old friends. Something told him there might be some merit to Optimus claim but he couldn't be sure.

Sentinel obviously refused to believe it and didn't want Magnus to believe it either. "Sir, we both know that Prowl is dead. That can't possibly be-"

Ultra Magnus put up his hand and cut him off. "I can hand this, Sentinel," he said patiently. He looked at Optimus and the others. "Why don't we discuss this in my office?" he asked. "I don't feel comfortable dealing with something like this in the hall."

Optimus nodded and the group, including Sentinel, followed him back to the office. Once there Magnus went around the other side of his desk and sat down. "Bring the organic here," he ordered Optimus. The young bot complied and gently deposited Prowl onto Magnus desk.

Once Prowl climbed out of Optimus' hand the older robot leaned forward. He looked Prowl right in the eye. "They seem to insist that you are Prowl," he said to him. "You are aware that he died saving Detroit and was given a heroes burial for what he did, are you not?"

Prowl nodded. "Yes," he said. "I was informed of that."

"Then you do know what the penalty for lying about something like this, correct?"

Prowl nodded again.

"Then having said that: I would like to draw my own conclusion on this matter by having you answer a question that only Prowl how to respond to."

Prowl looked up at him expectantly.

"Who was the one responsible for the protoforms being stolen from the dojo and for the removal of Master Yoketron's helmet?"

Prowl's answer was instant. " The bounty hunter Lockdown."

"Is that your final answer?"

The cyber ninja didn't even flinch or let his gaze wonder for a second. "Yes, sir."

Magnus smiled, completely satisfied. "Then you have just proven your identity." he reached out a hand and gently rested it on Prowl's shoulder. "You are indeed who you claim to be."

Bee looked right at Sentinel. "Told you so!" he said smugly.

Sentinel was still unwilling to believe it. "He has obviously been reading files on that issue," he argued.

"No," Ultra Magnus correct. "Nobody _else_ knew who was responsible for that besides Prowl and Jazz and, since Prowl died, only Jazz had been left to tell me." he pointed at Prowl, predicting Sentinel's next protest.. "There is no way he could have gotten the information from Jazz because he has not been on the planet since Prowl's funeral."

The dark blue robot fell silent. He couldn't think of any other arguement for it. He only had one choice. He had to believe that the other human really _was _Prowl after all, though he could not think of any explanation for what he was seeing. Instead he changed the subject. "But there's still the matter of the missing protoform," he pointed out.

"I don't think we need to worry about that," Ultra Magnus said, his optics still focused on Prowl. "Not when the answer to that mystery is standing in front of us."

Sentinel looked confused. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Magnus kept on looking at Prowl. "I'm sure _he_ won't mind resolving that issue."

Prowl knew what he meant. He would have to tell them both the story, again. He was getting tired of doing it but knew he couldn't protest. He nodded and began to explain.

* * *

Prowl stood outside the Elite Guard headquarters a few hours later, his right hand resting against a column of the building and his eyes focused on the city. The planet's sun had set a half hour earlier and the remaining rays of it colored the sky a pinkish purple. That was the thing with Cybertron; it's daytime was always a few shorts hours long. If you worked in an office you'd miss it. It was like a winter sun back on Earth, weak and waning quickly. He sighed. This was the very first time he'd even seen the planet's sun set. As rumors went; this one proved true. It _had_ been beautiful. But his mind wasn't really on the sight.

He was going over what had happened in Ultra Magnus office after he'd explained how he'd wound up that way. Of course nobody had given Magnus their theories on the subject. They'd given him room to draw his own conclusions. He'd readily admitted that he had no explanation either. It seemed nobody _ever _would. It would have been best just to not dwell on it.

Sentinel's reaction didn't help. He still had a major case of paranoia about organics and voiced his own feelings about it, saying he hoped he was never resurrected as one, especially a freak. The others had done their best to ignore him but the dark blue robots words started getting on Prowl's nerves. It might have been because organics were better tuned to their emotions than robots or Prowl had just reached his final point of annoyance. The answer didn't matter. What _did _matter was that he'd flat out insulted the Prime and told him to shut his big fat mouth and stuff his words where his headlights don't shine. Something they all would have expected Bumblebee to say, not him.

Everyone had been surprised by his outburst, including himself. Realizing his mistake, he'd tried to apologize but Sentinel started having a fit and wouldn't allow him to speak. He'd insisted it made his point and also insisted that Prowl and his comrades be kicked off the planet for insulting him.

Of course that just caused an argument with Optimus telling Sentinel off and Sentinel shouting over everyone to make himself heard. It got so loud that Sari had covered her ears with her hands.

Ultra Magnus had finally gained control of the situation and, shooting Prowl a strong, warning look, suggested that they drop the subject and head back to earth that very night. Magnus had insisted that going back a day early would be best for everyone, including Prowl who needed time to get things together and get used to what happened to him, but Prowl knew better. He just wanted him off the planet.

_I don't blame him, _he thought now. _I shouldn't have reacted to Sentinel's words the way I did. I should have had better control of my temper. _He looked at his hands, studying the grooves on the fingertips, fingerprints Sari had called them. _Why do I keep getting the feeling that this has something to do with it?_

"Prowl?" a voice behind him said.

He looked over his shoulder. Sari stood in the doorway of the building. She was looking at him with worry in her blue eyes. "Hello, Sari," he said. "Is there something you want? Are we leaving now?"

She shook her head then started walking toward him. "Is there something wrong?" she asked.

"No," he lied. "Nothing is wrong."

She wasn't buying it. "Are you _sure_ about that?" she pressed. "You seemed upset when you left Ultra Magnus office." she put her hand on his shoulder. "You aren't upset about what Sentinel said, are you?"

"No," he lied again, his gaze once again focusing on the sunset sky. The pink was starting to fade into the purple black of night. "I expected that kind of thing from him."

"Then why did you blow up at him like that?" she wanted to know.

"I don't know," he admitted, shaking his head. "I usually have better control of my temper but..." he clenched his fists, feeling the material of his fingerless black gloves bunch up into his palms. "I couldn't control it this time. That shouldn't have happened."

"I see," she said, suddenly understanding. "You're starting to experience human emotions and you can't control them."

Now he did look at her. "_Human_ emotions?" he inquired.

"Yeah," she replied, shrugging. "Losing ones temper is something humans do a lot."

"But I've lost my temper before," he told her. "I've _always_ had a temper. I've always had emotions."

"But not like _this_," she corrected. "You've always had better control of them back then, remember?" when he nodded she continued. "Robots and humans.. er techno organics have different emotions. They _are_ the same but I get the feeling that if I were a full robot my emotions would be different."

"How so?" he wanted to know, sounding interested.

"For one thing; robots can't really experience sadness," she told him. "Of course you can get upset when one of your own dies but you don't cry. You _can't _cry. You only experience it but not _experience_ it."

He didn't seem to be understanding so she tried again. "Remember when Bumblebee and my dad were trapped on the roof of Sumdac Tower when Starscream attacked you all?" when he nodded she asked. "Remember when I started crying? Remember how Bulkhead asked me what I was doing and I had to explain it to you?"

"But you were faking." he was quick to point out.

"I wasn't faking when Optimus died and I didn't fake it when I was happy that he came back to life," she told him. "I really _was_ crying. Have you ever had that kind of thing happen to you? Have you ever cried like that?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Exactly. Robots weren't made to cry. You can get sad but you can't cry. That is a human thing. You can also feel other emotions but not like I have." she could tell he wasn't getting it. She sighed, shaking her head. "Never mind. I'm not very good at this. Maybe you should just give it some time?" she turned to go. "Maybe when we get back to earth it'll become clearer. After all; you're going to have to get used to it and you'll be around more human beings."

The thought wasn't exactly reassuring. What if he said or did something weird? _Since when have I ever been self conscious? _

Just then Bumblebee appeared in the doorway.. He saw alone Prowl and Sari together but a pretty good distance separated them. "Uh, guys," he said.

They both looked up at him. "It's time to go," he said, pointing with his thumb. "Optimus asked me to let you know."

Prowl nodded. "We'll be right there," he said, already heading toward the door.

Sari walked ahead, joining Bumblebee. The two best friends waited for him to catch up then all three headed back inside. Bee and Sari started up a conversation about what they planned on doing when they got back to the planet. Something about video games and hockey. Prowl said nothing. He had other things on his mind. Something besides his new set of emotions and fears was bothering him but he couldn't figure out what it was.

_Then don't dwell on it, _he told himself, shaking his head to clear it. _It's probably not even important. You're going back to earth and leaving any Cybertronian problems behind you. You should be happy. You always liked Earth more than your home planet anyway. _

_A/N_

_I really didn't want to prolong their stay on Cybertron anymore. All my ideas are on Earth so while they were on the planet I was stuck with the annoying writer's block. This fic is likely not to get updates as fast as Amaranth did party because I'm stuck and because we're losing our Internet so updates will have a bit of a.... gap. I'll have to post them at the library. Don't worry. _

_The funner stuff will be happening when they get to earth. XD_


	3. Chapter 3

**Note: I'm going to try to submit one chapter a week. **

CHAPTER 3

**Sometime in the future... I'm kidding. A few hours later on the ship.**

Prowl woke with severe cramps in his stomach area. He sat up on the recharge berth , moaning in pain. Nobody else was in the recharge room on the ship at the moment so he was experiencing this new kind of pain alone. Which was all well and good. For now.

He curled up into a ball, his arms wrapped around his stomach. It wasn't just the pain that woke him, though that was a factor. It was the horrible noise also coming from that area as well. It sounded like some monster was inside him. He wouldn't say it out loud but he was scared to death.

_Space barnacles. _was the conclusion he came to, while grasping his stomach in pain._ It's got to be space barnacles._

If it was he didn't want them to stay there. He had to get rid of them, immediately. One bad encounter with those parasites was enough for him. He crawled off the recharge table and flopped painfully to the floor. His new body punished him for it with waves of pain from other places but he ignored them. He forced himself to stand and made his way into the hall. There he met Sari who was on her way to the recharge room to get a nap. She didn't really use the berths, they had brought an air mattress for her to sleep on when they'd left her home planet.

She got one look at him, staggering and stumbling around like he was on high grade, and deduced that there was something seriously wrong. "Prowl!" she exclaimed, running up to him. "What is it? Are you all right?"

"No," he moaned, his arm still around his belly. "My stomach."

She cocked her head. "Your stomach?"

"It hurts and I think there are space barnacles inside it," he answered.

She stared at him, looking totally confused. "_What_?! Space barnacles?"

"It's making this horrible noise..." just then it did it again. "See?"

She listened then came to her own conclusion. Her face broke into a smile and she burst out laughing. He watched her crack up, frowning. He didn't think there was anything funny about it. "How can you laugh about such a thing?" he demanded. "I could be dying!"

She tried to get control of herself. "I'm sorry, Prowl!" she gasped, leaning against the wall for support. "But you're not dying and that's not space barnacles invading your stomach."

"Then what is it?" he demanded, still not understanding.

She looked up at him, still smiling. "You're just hungry."

His expression told her he didn't believe that. "Hungry?"

"Yeah, you know," she said. "Like when you're low on energy and need to refuel. This is kind of the same thing only you don't have alarms telling you to do it. Just that noise which is your stomach growling. It only does that when you need food."

"What is food?"

"The stuff I eat," she replied, hitting her chest with her hand. When he still didn't look like he understood so she grabbed his arm and led him down the hall. "Come on. I'll show you what I mean."

He followed her but only party because she had a firm grip on his arm. The other part was because he knew he would have to trust her. She had been like this much longer than he had so it was likely she knew what she was talking about. Even if it _did_ sound weird.

A few minutes later they entered the supply room. He spotted the stacks of energon cubes left there for the others consumption. He made as if to head in that direction but Sari yanked on his arm, stopping him, and leading him in the opposite direction. '"You don't want to try that," she informed him when he shot her a look. "It wouldn't be pretty."

He almost argued with her but decided against it. She led him to a small row of rectangles with handles on them, leaning against the far wall. He counted about four. They all looked the same with two doors stacked on each other and they all made the same soft humming noises that told him they were working. He recognized these things. They were refrigerators. Sari walked over to the one on the end and opened the lower and bigger door. She grabbed something out of it, shut the door, and turned around and walked back to him. When she reached him she handed him the item. "Here, try this."

He took the object and stared at it suspiciously. It was a thin rectangular thing with the word Chocolate written in white lettering on the front. "What do I do with this?" he asked, holding it between two fingers and giving it a scrutinizing look.

"You eat it," she explained.

He looked uncertain, then lifted the thing to his mouth and started to bite down. "Wait a minute!" Sari shouted, grabbing his arm.

He stopped in mid-bite. "Whum?" he asked, the thing partway in his mouth.

She yanked it out. "You don't eat it like _that_," she said, ripping off the covering. Something brown colored was underneath. "You have to take the paper off first." she handed it back to him. "Here, now try it."

He took the thing from her and took a bite. He chewed for a second then made a face. For some reason the face he made offended her. "What?"

"I don't like it," he said, taking it out of his mouth. "It tastes awful."

Now he could tell she really _was _offended. "You don't like _chocolate_?" she asked as if she couldn't believe it. "_Everyone_ likes chocolate!"

"Well, I'm sorry," he said, handing it back. "I don't. It just doesn't appeal to me."

She snatched it out of his hand. "Fine, then I'll find something _else_." she turned back to the fridges and opened the one closest to them. She rummaged around and pulled something else out. A round red thing with a tiny brown thing on the top. "You always like organic things. So here; try this apple. It grows on trees."

He took the apple and bit into it. The face he made this time was much different. "This is better," he said, enjoying the flavor immensely. If he ever imagined food tasting like something this was it. Sweet and juicy. A lot better than any kind of fuel he had as a machine.

"Right." she decided to finish the chocolate herself. "Who hates chocolate?" he heard her mutter as she bit into it. "Prowl hates chocolate. I should have known."

He wasn't sure if he should be annoyed or apologize. Instead he said nothing and just finished the apple. He liked the taste of apples. The chocolate had tasted generic to him, like it wasn't even real food. How could Sari even eat something like that?

When he was finished she asked. "Feeling better now? Are those space barnacles quiet?"

He gave her a look. "Very funny."

"Oh come on, you have to admit it's funny," she pressed. "Space barnacles attack metal objects, not people and they don't burrow into your stomach and growl at you." she put her hands on her hips, cocking her head to the side. "You of all people should know that." He still wasn't amused. "Hey, it was a joke!" she told him.

"It's not funny."

"Ah, you're no fun," she pouted.

"So how much longer before we reach Earth?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Not for a few more days," she told him. "We were going to use the space bridge to go home so it would take up less time but Sentinel went and had them all shut down because he thought that more organics were going to start jumping through." she shook her head. "I guess he still isn't convinced that you are who you claim to be."

Prowl shrugged. He didn't really care what Sentinel believed or not. Now that they were no longer on the planet he could put that whole mess behind him. He just wanted to get back to Earth and see how his tree was doing and just enjoy being out in nature once more. It would be summer now so that meant there would be plenty of things to see.

While he'd been laying in the recharge berth waiting to fall asleep he'd come to the conclusion that he'd been brought back to life for a reason. He didn't know what that reason could be but it had to be something important. With this new body it almost felt like he was a normal person. He'd been told his robot shell had been given a proper burial so that part of his existance was over, he figured. Though he wasn't a firm believer in reincarnation what else could _this_ be? He'd come back in a completely new and different body. But he was still himself.

If that was how it was going to be, that was how it was going to be. He would just have to accept it and not dwell on the reason. The answer would come later.

"Hey, Prowl?" Sari's voice brought him out of his thoughts.

He looked at her. "Hmm?"

"You're not upset about, this are you?"

"About what?"

"You know," she pointed at him. "This, you're new body."

He shook his head. "Not really," he told her. "I was a little at first because I was confused and wondered why I came back the way I had but I gave it some thought and figured I couldn't change it and there must be a reason for it. I don't know what but I will someday." he pushed his glasses up his nose again. It was becoming a habit. "Right now I'll just have to get used to it. The answer will come to me eventually."

His answer seemed to surprise her as if she wasn't expect him to say such a thing.

"What?" he asked. "Did you expect me to be _bitter_?" he questioned.

"No," she replied, shaking her head and shrugging. "I just didn't expect you to, you know. Accept it so easily."

He looked her in the eye, his face completely serious. "What _other _choice do I have?"

"Good point." something came to her. "I just thought of something. Since you're organic like me now, where are you going to stay?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean you can't exactly stay at the plant because you're not big enough for your room anymore," she said.

"Why not?" he question, folding his arms. "You stayed with us for awhile."

"But it wasn't very comfortable," she told him. "I was happy to have my own room back."

"Oh..." he hadn't thought about that. He didn't want to right now. "I guess I'll cross that space bridge when I come to it."

"Or you could stay with me and my dad." she suggested.

He gaped at her. "What?!"

She looked away, realizing it was a stupid idea. "Nevermind." she changed the subject, grabbing his arm. "Let's go see what the others are doing."

He went along not really knowing what else to do, but his mind did dwell on her question. Would he have to find a new place to stay now? _I don't see why I should._

* * *

Ratchet was in the repair bay, working on his own arm where his EMP generator was placed. Right now he had it on the examining table beside him as he worked. Even though he had the device back the area where it went still bothered him sometimes.

"Hey, Ratchet!" Sari called when she and Prowl entered the room.

He looked up from what he was doing and focused his gaze on both techno organics. He was still having trouble getting used to Prowl's new body so he didn't say anything at first as he tried to come up with a reply that didn't sound offensive. Prowl was sensative about his new body and didn't seem to like people asking him questions about it. Mostly "How are you doing?" and "Doesn't it feel weird to be in a body like that now?"

Bumblebee had made the mistake of asking that question and got a death glare response and then a kick on the foot. It seemed that, even though Prowl's body was like Sari's now, he could still hurt people pretty bad.

While that kind of reaction might have seemed out of character if the cyber ninja had still been in his old body, his reactions seemed to be justified now. It really _was_ annoying to be constantly asked those questions.

"Is there something you want?" the medic wanted to know. He stared right at Prowl. "Not having any trouble's are you?"

"Nope," Sari replied, walking over him. "We just wanted to see what you were up to."

"Nothing," Ratchet replied. "There's nothing to do right now and there won't be until we get back to Earth."

Sari sighed. She knew he was right. The trip to and from Earth was totally boring. If only Sentinel hadn't messed with the space bridges. "Where's Bumblebee?" she asked after a moment.

"I don't know," the medic replied. "He was in here a few minutes ago moaning that his Xbox 360 wasn't working. I told him it wouldn't on the ship but it seems he had to find that out for himself again."

Sari frowned. Bumblebee had brought the Xbox with him when they'd left Earth to bring the Decepticons back to Cybertron. The Xbox hadn't worked then either. She noticed Prowl was smirking. "What?" she asked him.

"Maybe that's for the best," he told her. "He spends too much time playing that thing anyway."

"You _would _say something like that," she told him. "You've never been one for video games anyway."

"And it's not going to change, even with this new body." he looked at his hand, wiggling his fingers. "I think I'll be using this body more for tending plants than playing video games. It'll be more rewarding."

Part of her was disappointed at his words but she didn't tell him. "I still think you should give them a chance," she responded. "You might learn that you _like_ them."

The look he gave her said otherwise. "I'll stick to gardening."

* * *

Prowl's previous worries had been well founded. There _was_something wrong on Cybertron. Something very wrong. But it would be awhile before anyone realized it.

This problem was currently incarcerated but, if things went his way, that wouldn't last much longer. He had a plan and soon he would put it into motion. He just had to be patient. They'd come for him eventually and, when they did, they would never know what hit them.

This person sat on the cot in his small, dimly lit cell and glanced down where his left arm should have been. He'd lost it in an explosion. Course that wasn't the_ first _time he'd lost an arm. Ever since he'd met certain Autobots, losing his limbs and becoming a cracked and damaged loser had become pretty common.

But then there was the memory of a certain annoying ninja who always messed up his plans and was responsible for him losing his right arm all those stellar cycles ago. But that certain ninja was no more. He's stupidly given up his spark to save organics. The prisoner smirked. With the cyber ninja out of the way revenge would be a easier.

* * *

A few days later Optimus touched the ship down in a deserted parking lot in the city of Detroit, a few miles away from Sumdac Tower. As he shut down the ship and everybody got ready to depart he noticed Prowl looking out at the city with an expression that was halfway between excitement and worry. "Don't worry, Prowl," he said reassuringly. "It's going to be all right."

"I know," Prowl told him, turning his gaze from the city and looking up at the Autobot leader. "I was just wondering how our friends are going to react to seeing me like this." he pushed up his glasses. "What if they don't know who I am? Should I be worried about what they think?"

Optimus didn't know what to tell him. He had no idea _what_ to tell him. He was surprised Prowl was even worried about such a small thing. Usually he didn't seem to care what people thought of him. Maybe his new body was making him self conscious. "I'm sure you can prove to them who you are," he told him.

"And who cares what they think?" Sari added, from where she stood by Bulkhead across the room. "It's not like they're going to beat you with sticks."

"Why should you care if they know who you are anyway?" Bumblebee wanted to know. "You got a big head or something? You want them all to like worship you for saving their city?"

Prowl shot him a corrective glare. "No!" he snapped. "I just don't want to explain myself again. You know how annoying that's getting?"

"Then don't," Bee said, intelligently. "Let them think we found you somewhere and gave you a lift."

"That is not funny," the cyber ninja said flatly.

"I'm just messing with you," the yellow mecha told him, waving his words off. "I'm sure it won't be as bad as you think."

He didn't believe that for a second. If he'd had a hard time convincing his friends that he was who he was, convincing human beings would be much harder. Especially ones he didn't have a lot of time with. Oh sure, he'd go to the park a lot but not to talk to people. He'd spent most of his time observing nature. Though he did speak with the occasional bird watcher, like Carly Witwicky.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned his head. Sari stood beside him with a smile on her face. "Don't worry about it, Prowl," she said reassuringly. "It'll be okay."

_Easy for you to say._ He didn't say. He just nodded his head. "I hope you're right."

A few minutes later the Autobot and Prowl and Sari exited the ship. A crowd had gathered to watch the group disembark and when they walked down the ramp they let out a cheer. Professor Sumdac, who had gotten a ride with Captain Fanzone, made his way through the crowd and ran up to Sari to give her a hug. "It's so good to have you home, Sari," he said, hugging her tightly. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, Dad," she said her voice strained from how tight he held her. "But I can't breathe."

He let her go and stepped back to get a look at her."You've grown up so much."

She looked embarrassed. "Dad," she said, rubbing her arm and rolling her eyes at the crowd and the Autobots. "Not in front of everyone."

"I am sorry," he apologized. That's when he noticed Prowl. "And who is this?" he asked, sounding surprised.

Sari looked back at Prowl who was standing beside Ratchet, or rather trying to hide behind him. The look on his face was that of one who would rather be elsewhere. "Oh, him," she said. She pointed toward the young man with her thumb. "That's Prowl."

Sumdac stared at him. "Prowl?" he sounded like he either didn't believe her or was awed by what had happened to the cyber ninja.

"Yeah," she said. "It's Prowl... he's just, you know, different now."

Professor Sumdac remembered seeing Prowl's sparkless shell being carried into Omega Supreme when the Autobots and his daughter had left the planet a few weeks ago. He was well aware that Prowl was dead but, as he stared at this young man who wore colors with designs similar to Prowl's frame colors embroidered on them, he got the feeling that something had changed. He walked over to Prowl who looked at him through blue tinted glasses that slid down his nose when he turned his head. Sari and the other Autobot's watched the Professor, wondering what he was going to do. He stood before the cyber ninja, noting that he was a few inches taller than himself.

He studied him carefully, taking in his stance and the look on his face. Everything looked very familiar. "Prowl?" he said. "Is that really you?"

The cyber ninja nodded. "Yes, Professor. It is me." he sounded relieved that the man recognized him.

"But how did you...?"

Sari gave her father a nervous look. "It's a long story."

"Oh." Sumdac nodded, never taking his eyes off Prowl. "I see. I'm sure you will tell me everything later."

Having settled that, the group continued climbing down the ramp and walked toward the crowd. Captain Fanzone and the rest of the police had been called in to make sure the crowds didn't get out of hand upon seeing their heroes return home. When Optimus and the others reached where he stood he looked up at them and gave them a salute. "Glad to have ya back," he told him. "Maybe now ya can help us out some more with those whack jobs." he noticed Prowl walking with Professor Sumdac and Sari. "Hello, Prowl."

His words surprised everyone. Prowl stopped in mid-step and gaped at him. "How do you know who I am?" he asked, surprised.

Fanzone shrugged carelessly. "Eh, it's not too hard to figure out," he answered, walking over to him. "Your color scheme gave you away." He smirked. "Looks like ya finally got your wish." he slapped him in the back, nearly knocking him over. "Hope ya enjoy being a human. Just don't break the law or I'll have to haul ya in."

Prowl righted himself, rubbing his sore back. "I'll remember that," he promised." Behind him Isaac and Sari stared at each other opened mouth.

Captain Fanzone noticed their surprise was reflected on the Autobot's faces as well. "What's that look for?" he demanded. "I would be able to tell who Prowl was no matter _what_ kind of body he had. He's not that hard to figure out, especially when he wears clothing the same color as his robot body. And his stance gave him away as well." he added.

"You know, I never thought of that," Bumblebee said, scratching his head. "Now that you mention it it should have been obvious."

"If we'd known that sooner I could have been saved all that trouble," Prowl said under his breath.

Sari heard him and put her hand on his shoulder. "Sorry about that."

He shook his head. "I'm not blaming you."

"Okay," Fanzone said, breaking into the conversation. "Let's get moving. This isn't a picnic. We gotta clear this place out in ten minutes or we'll be forced to give ya all a ticket." he turned to the crowd. "Let's clear a path, people!"

Fanzone's subordinates helped clear a path through the onlookers for Optimus and his comrades even though they didn't really need to because, when the people saw the Autobots coming, they moved by themselves. Nobody wanted to be stepped on. Some of the people noticed Prowl and started whispering. He could tell that they didn't recognize him. That wasn't surprising. Just because it had been easy for Fanzone and Professor Sumdac, didn't mean it would be easy for the other humans.

When the Autobots reached the end of the parking lot they all transformed and started to drive away but stopped when they realized Prowl was still where he was. "Sorry," Optimus said, turning himself back to him. "We forgot." He opened his side door. "Here, I'll give you a lift."

For a second Prowl didn't move but finally he sighed and climbed in. As the door closed he watched Professor Sumdac and Sari get into Captain Fanzone's car and drive to Sumdac Tower.

Optimus pulled away from the parking lot and he and the others drove down the speedway to the plant. Prowl sighed and leaned back against the seat of Optimus cab. He was suddenly feeling annoyed with himself. He hadn't realized how much he missed his vehicle mode. Sure he was grateful for Optimus giving him a lift but he wasn't feeling happy about it. He was a little ticked off. He didn't want this to start becoming a habit.

_I'm going to have to get myself my own vehicle, _he resolved. _Maybe Professor Sumdac can build me one. _

He opened his eyes and looked out the window, his attention focusing on the view of the city at night. He shouldn't let it bother him, he told himself. It wasn't a big deal. If Sumdac was able to build Sari a jet pack/scooter he could build him something as well. _If he does I want it to look like my vehicle mode did only with some upgrades. Like a holoprojector. _His glasses slid down his nose and he pushed them back up. _I'll see him about it tomorrow._

For a few minutes the only noise was the sound of Optimus tires and engine rumbling as he drove back to the plant. The silence was suddenly interrupted by a gargly growling sound. "What was that?" Optimus wanted to know, sounding startled.

Prowls smiled with embarressment, even though Prime couldn't see him. "I think, before we head to the base, we should stop by the grocery store."

_A/N_

_Yes, there is going to be a little more to the plot than just Sari helping Prowl get used to being organic. I never write a story without something else going on. Don't hate me. I refused to prolong their stay on the ship as well. I wrote some stuff and then ended it when my mind went blank. Sorry if that part seemed to have more to it. It felt that way but I had no more ideas. _

_Yeah, hehehe I always thought Fanzone was smarter than most people gave him credit for. He would be smart enough to figure that out without trouble. XD_

_Now the real fun can begin. _


	4. Chapter 4

**Note: I know that Prowl and the others know what food is and they had some in Soundwave's dream world. But making him and the others innocent about it makes for a better story. No, I'm not handing him or the other Autobots the idiot ball so don't think that. **

CHAPTER 4

A half hour later, after a short trip to the Supermart, Optimus with his techno organic passenger pulled up in front of the plant. The others were already inside. When Optimus told them he had to make a quick detoure the others had offered to come with but he told them that wouldn't be necessary. He wouldn't be long. The only problem at the store was that Prowl was having a hard time finding what he wanted. He seemed obsessed with natural and healthy foods and didn't even bother buying any meat or sweets. It was slow going.

"Natural fuel is best," he'd told him as he carried the bags into the cab, more than an hour later. "I don't understand how these organics can eat all that junk they call food."

Optimus had no way of answering that question, so he said nothing. He waited until Prowl and his baggage were safely in the cab and the door was closed before he pulled out and headed to the plant.

"Where do you plan on keeping that stuff so it doesn't go bad?" Prime asked him as they headed inside with the bags.

The cyber ninja looked up at him. "There's an old fridge that we used when Sari was staying here," he reminded him. "Last time I checked, it still worked. I'll put it there."

"Let's just hope nobody decides to look inside." Optimus noticed one bag Prowl held contained a weird jelly like substance in an ice cream like container. "What in the Allspark is _that_?"

Prowl looked up at him. "What?"

Prime pointed at the bag. "That!"

The cyber ninja set the bag down and took the item out. He studied it a moment in the dim light. "Tofu," he replied.

Optimus cocked his head. "Tofu?"

"It's supposed to be good for you," Prowl replied, putting it back in the bag. "The package said it's a good substitue for meat."

"Oh. Right," Optimus said. He didn't have a clue what meat was. "How can you even be sure you're going to like that stuff? It doesn't even look appetizing, even for human food."

He shrugged. "I won't know until I try it."

"Right..."

The conversation ended there. It felt way too weird to be talking about organic food and meat with Prowl. Optimus was still kind of used to him being a robot so this was odd. Well even though the choices of substinance Prowl had chosen were odd, he'd obviously done a lot of organic food searches online back then, though why he had no idea. Maybe he knew this was going to happen to him.

_I wouldn't be surprised. _

When the two Autobots entered the plant Bumblebee came running up to them. "It's about time you got back!" he shouted. "You took so long we thought you got attacked by Decepticons."

Optimus shook his head "No," he answered. "We just had to stop at the local Supermart to pick up some food for Prowl."

"Oh, yeah," Bee said, remembering. "He's organic now so that means he's gotta eat Sari's kind of fuel." he noticed Prowl looking over the top of his glasses at him. His expression was very familiar. It was the same one he would give Bee when he said or did something stupid, right before he clocked him. "What's that look for?!" the yellow Autobot wanted to know. "and what's in those bags?"

Before Prowl could stop him Bee reached down and yanked the plastic bags out of his hands. He pulled some of the items out, scrutinizing them. "Is this it?" he looked at the cardboard canister he held. "_Tofu_?! EW!"

Prowl glared at him. "_You're_ not eating it," he pointed out testily.

"I know that," Bee said, still staring at the container. "But why would _you_ want to? It doesn't even look edible, even for organic food."

"Because it's healthier than meat," the cyber ninja replied, walking over to the yellow mecha. "Now give it back before I make you."

"What are you going to do if I don't, shorty?" Bee asked, grinning down at him. "Gnaw my ankles off."

Prowl glared up at him, clenching his fists. He seemed to be having a hard time controlling his temper. Suddenly he lashed out with his foot, kicking Bumblebee hard in the leg.

"YEOW!" Bee yelped, dropping the bag and package and holding his foot as he hopped around in pain. "Don't _do _that! It hurts!"

"Well you brought it on yourself," Prowl informed him, stooping to pick up his stuff. He looked at Optimus. "I'll put these away myself."

Prime handed the other bags over and the cyber ninja walked away.

"Man, why does he have to do that?" Bumblebee demanded, rubbing his foot. "and why in the Allspark is it so _painful_?"

"Well you kind of brought that all on yourself," Optimus told him, folding his arms. "You should have just given it back to him."

"Well he didn't have to get so defensive!" Bee shot back, rubbing the sore spot. "I wasn't hurting it."

* * *

Prowl found the fridge in the room that Sari had stayed in when Porter C. Powell had kicked her out of Sumdac Tower. By the soft humming sound coming from it he knew it was still working. He set the bags on the floor and opened the door. A few minutes later he was throwing the bags into the recycling bins behind the plant. He went back inside and walked down the hall until he reached his own room. He pulled onto the cord attached to his blind-like doors and stepped inside.

The room hadn't changed. He could still see the poster of the dog doing chin lifts on the wall with it's cute little slogan and the tree he'd taken care of. It looked so much bigger now that he was no longer nineteen feet tall. He crossed the room, his black shoes making soft scraping sounds on the dirty carpet. He put out his hand and rested it on the tree.

His eyes widened. The bark felt rougher than he remembered. He ran his hand over it, feeling the new texture. A small smile came to his lips. Of _course_ it felt different. He had changed, not the tree. He was finally feeling it the way it _should _be felt. The texture and roughness were the real feelings. When he had hands made of metal he hadn't been able to appreciate it. Now he could.

He sighed and leaned against the tree, the rough bark digging into his cheek.

Yes, it was different. Very different. But it wasn't bad.

It wasn't bad at all.

* * *

"So you think Prowl's spark was sent back from the Well and possessed a protoform?" Professor Sumdac questioned.

He and Sari were in the family room in Sumdac Tower, sitting on the couch and eating a late dinner. When they'd gotten home Professor Sumdac had asked Sari to tell him how Prowl had wound up being a human. While they ate she told him the story. "Well that's what we think," she told him now as she ate her meal. "We're not sure _how_he wound up in the stasis pod or how he wound up being like me. We have this theory that the protoform that his spark currently is possessing might have been the protoform I touched when we were on the moon and it might have scanned my DNA and that's how he wound up that way."

"I see," he thought about that for a moment then commented. "Then that would make you his mother, right?"

Her face flared red. "What?!" she exclaimed.

"Well when I touched your protoform you became a person and my daughter," he explained. "So him being your son shouldn't be too far from the truth."

"Dad!" Sari exclaimed, mortified by the thought. "You and I aren't really related, you know."

"I know." she could tell he didn't like being reminded of that one little fact.

"And Prowl was a robot _before _he got his new body," she pointed out, not wanting to get into that discussion again. "Just because the protoform might, and that's a big might, had scanned my DNA, it doesn't mean I'm his mother now."

He thought about that a moment then nodded. "You're right," he agreed. He sat back and thought for a moment. "So what is he going to do now?"

She shrugged. "I don't know," she admitted. "When I asked him about it he told me he intends to go back to the plant with the others and live there with them."

"Is he sure that is a good idea?"

"Hey, this is Prowl," Sari said, making a helpless gesture. "He does what he wants to do. Besides his tree is there and I doubt he'd want to leave the plant with the others. He might be afraid they won't take care of it."

"But that tree's been growing fine by itself before he came here," Sumdac pointed out.

The girl shrugged. "That's Prowl for you," she said. "I did ask him about staying here with us but he refused. He just doesn't want to do it. Maybe he thinks you'll make him get a job or something."

The very thought of Prowl working in the plant brought a very amusing mental image into the inventor's head. He snickered. Sari gave him a weird look but he turned away from her, knowing she wouldn't get it if he told her.

* * *

"Hey, Megajerk."

Megatron turned his head to glare at the speaker. The prisoner in the cell across from his own was standing at the barred window and looking into his own. This robot's face mostly consisted of teeth, or that's how it looked because he was constantly grinning like an imbecile at the Decepticon Commander. Megatron could tell that this robot was one of his subordinates but he couldn't remember his name. If Megatron had been the one to name him he would have chrisened him Bigmouth, because he wouldn't stop talking.

Well, whatever his name was, he was obnoxious and his insane laughter was worse than Blitzwing when he was in random mode. Right now he wasn't laughing, thank Primus, but he was grinning and that was bad enough.

"What do you want?" Megatron demanded.

Every day this loon would vie for his attention, saying the exact greeting whenever the lights would come on. "Hey, Megajerk!" For the longest time Megatron ignored him but now, since he was getting sick of being called Megajerk, he decided to give the guy some kind of audience.

"I heard you were thwarfed by a bunch of malfunctions," the robot snickered. "Oh wow, the mighty ruthless Decepticon leader defeated by a bunch of rookies." the robot then proceeded to go into another laughing fit.

Megatron glared at him for a moment then looked away. Old Cackleface could say what he wanted but when Megatron got out of there he would be the first to know. _Soon, you'll be picking those big teeth of yours off the floor. _

"By the way, Megsy," the robot went on. "I heard they already decided on the verdict of your trial. They're gonna find you guilty then give you the old needle. Hahaha! The whole trial is just for show! It's great entertainment, making the populace think that the court system is _fair_." the laughing robot dissolved into another cackle fit then got ahold of himself. "Fair my afterburners. The only fair thing about it is that it makes for a fair amount of entertainment."

"I am afraid I won't be here for my trial," Megatron said, his voice flat.

Cackleface sobered and stared at him confusion written on his simple face. "What?"

"You heard me, I won't be here for my trial," the Decepticon commander repeated. "In a matter of cycles the only thing they will be trying is an empty cell."

The other robot said nothing for a moment then laughed again, this time it sounded strained. "Whoa, you had me going there for a moment," he snickered. "We both know the only way you're going to leave here is by pyre."

"If that's what you wish to believe, my big mouthed friend."

Megatron's tone made the other robot shudder.

* * *

Bumblebee was curious on how Prowl was doing. He knew the cyber ninja had gone to his room to check on his things. But that had been hours ago. The sun was up now and Prowl hadn't returned to the living area. _I wonder what he's doing?_

He snuck down the hall and poked his head into Prowl's room. The robot now organic seemed to be trying to climb the tree but wasn't getting anywhere. He kept on sliding down the trunk whenever he got a few feet off the floor.

"Slaggit!" Prowl cursed, sliding down the tree once more. "This was never a problem _before_!"

He heard a snickering and looked over his shoulder. Bumblebee stood in the doorway with his hand covering his mouth to stiffle his giggles. When the yellow Autobot saw that Prowl was looking at him he grinned and waved. "Hi, Prowl."

"What do _you_want?" the cyber ninja demanded, sounding grouchy.

_Must have woken on the wrong side of the recharge berth. _"Nothing," the youth replied. "I was just wondering what you were doing in here."

"Why? So you can make fun of me?"

"Wow, touche," Bee commented. "But no. I wasn't going to make fun of you."

Prowl didn't believe him. "Sure," he said, looking away. He looked up at the tree. "I guess that's why you were laughing at me just now. Because you were curious."

He'd offended him. That seemed to be easy to do since Prowl had become human. His patience wasn't as long as it used to be either. _Probably hormones or whatever humans have that makes them act weird during certain times of their lifespan... or something like that. _For a moment Bee didn't say anything. He watched Prowl try to climb the tree again without success.

Finally he asked. "Need any help?"

Prowl looked back at him, pushing his glasses up his nose. "Why do you care?" he asked him.

"To be honest I don't," Bee admitted. "But you look like you're about to break something and well I figured I could help you into the tree.... If it doesn't bother you that is." he added.

"It doesn't," he told him, looking up at the tree. "I was just about to go looking for a ladder anyway but if you're willing to help me up then fine."

Bee crossed the room and knelt down so Prowl could climb into his hand. He then stood up and raised his hand above his head. Prowl grabbed onto a tree branch and hoisted himself onto it. He looked down at Bee with a grateful look. "Thank you," he said.

"Eh, don't mention it," Bee said, shrugging. "I couldn't have you breaking a nail or something."

The grateful face changed to a scowl. "Very funny."

"Oh come on, you know that humans are delicate," Bee told him, grinning. "Now that you're one of them we gotta be careful that you don't break something."

Prowl wasn't amused. "I'm not as delicate as your feet," he pointed out.

Bee reached down and rubbed his left foot. It was still sore from being kicked multiple times by Prowl. "Why do you have to do that anyway?" he asked.

"Because I can't reach your head." he was flat reply.

Oh yeah. That's the place Prowl used to hit when Bee said or did something stupid. Like when he'd fought Meltdown's little steroid freak on TV. Now it seemed Prowl had another place he could hit when Bee acted like an idiot. What Bee didn't understand was, how could it hurt so much if Prowl was a human now? Sari was just like him and her kicks didn't hurt. Well her _kicks _might not have but her built in blades did.

"Well it's not very nice."

"Neither are your comments," the cyber ninja shot back. "If you kept your mouth shut I wouldn't have any reason to hit you, now would I?"

The yellow mecha knew Prowl was right. "Sorry."

"You _should_ be." he settled into a better position on the branch. "Now if you don't mind, I'd like to do my meditations now."

* * *

Sari decided to go to the plant and see how Prowl was doing. After breakfast and after she told Professor Sumdac where she was going, she took her jet pack outside and took to the air. When she reached the plant she touched down in the parking lot and took the pack off, allowing it to transform into its scooter mode. She chained the scooter to a telephone pole, so it wouldn't get stolen, then went inside.

The first robot she encountered was Ratchet. "Hi!" she greeted him, waving as she walked past. "Is Prowl up yet?"

"I believe so," the medic told her, looking a little distracted. "At least that's what I get from Bumblebee's mood."

"What's wrong with Bumblebee?" she wanted to know.

Ratchet shook his head. "Something Prowl said."

Oh. Of course. Bee had probably interrupted his meditations or something. He always liked to do that. Or maybe Bee had made another comment about Prowl's new body. Though she and the yellow Autrobot were best friends she couldn't help thinking that, if he had said something about it, anything Prowl dished out was something he _deserved_.

_Bee, you really need to learn to keep your opinions to yourself sometimes, _she thought, walking down the hall. She figured she'd talk to Bumblebee first then see how Prowl was doing.

She knew he'd be ticked off so she decided to let him vent his frustration to her. When it came to that she was usually a good listener, providing he didn't talk to long that is.

* * *

Prowl wasn't doing very well at the moment. He'd finished his meditations but when he'd tried to get down from the tree he'd discovered he was afraid of heights. The moment he'd started to climb down he'd made the mistake of looking at the ground. Not good.

So he was stuck.

_This is stupid, _he thought, hugging the branch. _How can I be afraid of __**heights**__!? I was never afraid of heights before! _he ground his teeth together. _Don't tell me this new body comes with fears as well! How am I going to get down from here?_

He contemplated yelling for help but his pride kept his mouth shut. He couldn't do that. It would be too embarrassing. He didn't need anymore unwanted attention. The others seemed to be treating him differently since he'd come back in his new body. It bothered him, though he kept telling himself it shouldn't.

_I can get down from here without help, _he told himself now. _I just got to keep looking up and not think about what will happen if I slip._

That thought didn't help. The more he tried to get those thoughts out of his mind the worse they barged in. He hadn't thought about what could happen if he did slip. He wasn't metal anymore so if he fell he'd feel more than a pinch. If he fell from this height he might break an arm or a leg or... **SPLAT!**

_No! _he shut his eyes and hugged the tree tighter. _Don't think about it!_ He started humming, trying to clear his mind. _Just climb down but don't think about falling. Think about forests. Quiet forests with birds and crickets._

and so he did, and climbed down, slowly. He'd only gotten a few feet when he lost his footing. He gasped, grasping the branch in an iron grip. When this happened he let out an involuntary cry. "_Help_!"

And at that moment Sari and Bumblebee decided to come into the room. Both gaped at the techno organic dangling from a high branch like a black and sand colored apple.

"Prowl?" Sari said, staring up at him. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to get down," he said, looking over his shoulder. He started to hoist himself up.

The two friends stared up at him.

Prowl almost slipped again. "A little help would be greatly appreciated!" So much for pride.

"All right." Bumblebee crossed the room and put his hand over Prowl's feet. The cyber ninja released his grip from the branch and landed gently in the yellow Autobot's hand. Bee knelt down and deposited Prowl onto the floor.

"Thanks," he said, looking up at Bee..

The look in his eyes told the young robot he meant it. "No problem."

"Why were you up there to begin with?" Sari wanted to know, watching him straighten his clothing. She already knew how he'd ended up in the tree. Bumblebee had told her about that mornings incident. He had only told her because he wanted to complain to somebody and gain some sympathy.

Well Sari had felt bad for the way Prowl had grumped at him but she could also see things from Prowl's point of view as well. Because of that it was kind of hard to see things from either point of view. Though Prowl's point of view was closer to her own. She'd always hated when the Autobots had treated her like she was made of glass just because of what she was.

"I wanted to do my mediations," he replied, looking over his glasses at her. "Since I usually do them up in the tree, I didn't think this time would be any different."

"So what happened?" she asked, the memory of him hanging from the branch still fresh in her mind.

He looked away from her. "I don't want to talk about it," he replied. He got the feeling if he told her that he was scared of heights with Bumblebee present he would never hear the end of it.

She didn't push it.

"By the way," he continued, looking back at her. "Why are you here? I thought you would have wanted to spend the day with your father since you haven't seen him in awhile."

"Dad was busy," she answered, shrugging. The fact did hurt her but she was used to it by now. "Besides I was wondering how you were doing and decided to come over."

"I am doing okay," he told her. "You don't have to worry about me. It's not like I haven't been in a organic body before."

He was referring to the incident with Soundwave. The Decepticon had tricked the Autobots into thinking they were organics. "Yeah, but that was an illusion," she reminded him. "This is for real. Remember that that was a dream and much different than reality. You might think you know what it's like but you're mistaken."

He couldn't argue with her. She was, after all, the expert in that area.

"Hey!" she spoke up suddenly.

He glanced at her suspiciously. Everytime she'd said hey around him it usually meant she was going to drag him somewhere against his will. "What?"

"Want to go to Dinobot island and see how Grimlock and the others are doing?"

He hadn't seen Grimlock and the other Dinobots in over a year. He'd been wanting to visit them again but never had a chance. He'd been planning on visiting them after the battle against Megatron and the Omega Supreme clones but then he'd died...He shook the memory out of his mind. He was alive now, though different. Now would be as good a time as any. "I guess," he said, a little relunctantly.

"Good!" Sari looked up at Bumblebee. "Can you give us a lift to the harbor?"

"I guess," he said, rubbing the back of his head. "Do you want me to come with you to the island just in case something happens?" He didn't really want to go there, since the Dinobot's scared the lube out of him, but he figured Prowl and Sari might need a little firepower in case the Dinobots attacked them.

She smiled at him. "Sure," she consented. "I was going to ask you to come along anyway."

_A/N_

_Hehehehe. That'll probably become a common thing. Prowl kicking Bee's foot when he acts like an idiot. No matter how many times he does it I still find it hilarious. By the way the grinning, cackling robot was based on Armada Cyclonus but has his Japanese name. _

_Man I got writer's block. I hate losing the Internet. Whenever that happens my ability to write becomes suppressed and makes it harder to come up with things. I am sorry. _

_As you might have noticed this fic is a bit more lighthearted than Amaranth. _


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

Bumblebee drove Sari and Prowl to the harbor. On the way Sari noticed Prowl looking out the car window on the driver's side (she was sitting in the passengers seat and he was in the driver's looking like he was the one doing the driving and not Bumblebee) with an unreadable expression. She instantly sensed that something was bothering him. "Prowl?" she inquired.

He turned his head to look at her. "Hmm?"

"Is something wrong?" she wanted to know. "You haven't said a word since we left."

"I was just thinking," he replied, a little absently.

"About what?"

"Nothing," he said evasively. "It's not important." He couldn't tell her that the problem was the fact that he wasn't happy being driven around.

_Get used to it, _his brain told him. _From now on it's going to be the new routine. _

He knew that but he still wasn't happy about it. Once again he considered asking Sari if she could talk to her father about getting him a vehicle, most considerably a motorcycle. He was used to that kind of machine since it had been his vehicle mode during his previous existence as a nuts and bolts robot. For now he just wouldn't say anything.

Sari didn't push it though she did wonder what the problem was.

A few minutes later they reached the harbor. When the two humans climbed out Bee transformed into standard mode and looked around the harbor. "Do you think these guys will let us borrow a freighter?" he asked out loud.

Prowl hoped so. If they didn't there would be not way of getting to the island. "We won't know until we ask."

So they went from freighter to freighter asking for a lift. Most of them made excuses or flat out refused to transport them but the final freighter's captain had great respect for the Autobots after all they did and happily gave them a left though he did look at Prowl funny when he boarded. "Who's that?" Prowl heard the captain ask Sari.

"It's a long story," she told him.

Prowl sighed and walked over to the railing, leaning against it and folding his arms. His gaze fell on the receding land. In a matter of hours they would be on Dinobot island and he would get to see if they were doing all right. And that's when worry set in. _What if they don't recognize me?_

The Dinobot's had simple processors. Getting them to figure out who he was would take a long time, providing they didn't roast him the moment they set their optics on him.

The realization almost made him order the captain to turn the ship around but he held himself back. He couldn't say anything. He didn't want the others asking any questions. _Just go, _he told himself. _You'll think of something._

_

* * *

_

A short time later the three friends stepped off the freighter on the Dinobots island. Bumblebee looked around himself, half expecting the Dinobots to come charging out of the trees and chase them back onto the ship. "So where are they?" he asked.

"I don't know," Prowl said, also looking around. "Probably in the crator." he walked forward. "Let's go."

Bumblebee looked at the captain. "Could you wait here?"

The man smiled and nodded. "Sure thing."

As they climbed the crater walls Sari grabbed onto Prowl's elbow to get his attention. "Prowl," she began.

He looked over at her. "Yes?"

"I hope you're not expecting the three Dinobots to be together," she told him.

He knew why she was saying that. When Soundwave had been controlling the Autobots she'd gotten help from some of the other robots wandering the area. She'd wound up with three. Scrapper, Wreck-Gar, and Snarl. Snarl had been the only Dinobot who had been willing to help them mostly because he and the other two Dinobots had had a falling out. "I'm not," he told her. "Unless the Dinobots got over that little misunderstanding I doubt they'll all be together."

"I just hope we run into the less dangerous of the three," Bumblebee commented. He was always nervous around the Dinobots because of their unpredictable behaviour.

So did Prowl. Unless Scrapper and Snarl had decided to leave the island for some reason. "I just hope they're all in a good mood today."

"Well, you don't have to worry about Scrapper," Sari smirked. "He's laid back after all and he pretty much has Snarl tamed."

"I wonder if he'll recognize you," Bumblebee snickered.

"I don't really care if he does," Prowl informed him, looking over the top of his glasses with that familiar annoyed expression. "I didn't come here to see a Constructicon and he's Bulkhead's friend, not mine."

"Don't you like the Constructicons?" Bumblebee asked, looking down at him.

"They always gave me a bad feeling," he told the young Autobot, folding his arms and looking ahead. "They still do."

"Oh."

By they they'd reached the other side of the crater and climbed down into the woods. Prowl instantly became aware of the smells of flowers and other forest smells. Since getting his new body he usually took a few moments to breath in the scent of the air. He'd done the same thing on the freighter, taking in the smell of water and a slight fishy odor. It was so interesting to have senses. He'd missed so much as a machine. Unfortunately he could not do that now because Sari and Bumblebee were still walking and he didn't want to lose them.

When he caught up with them Sari looked at him. "What did you stop for?" she asked him.

He didn't want to tell her so he lied. "I thought I heard something."

"Really?" she asked. "Could it have been the Dinobots?"

He shook his head. "I don't know."

"Most likely," Bumblebee spoke up, stopping to look around. "Or it could have been Scrapper. Unless they all left the island which I doubt."

"How do you know that?"

"It's obvious."

Just then Prowl felt more than heard the sound of heavy footsteps. He recognized them easily. "Hold it!" he ordered. "I think one of them is coming."

A few seconds later Grimlock the Dinobot's leader, and the only one that could speak, came toward them. He was walking at a leasurely pace and didn't seem to be aware of the three friends. Suddenly he froze and his blue optics focused on Bumblebee and the two techno organics.

"Don't move," Prowl ordered.

Neither Sari or Bumblebee were going to disobey the order. For a moment neither of them moved. Prowl contemplated whether to try speaking to Grimlock and seeing if he recognized him even in his new body or to keep his mouth shut. It didn't matter. Suddenly Grimlock let out a roar and charged.

"Yikes!" Bumblebee exclaimed. "Let's get out of here!"

He turned to run with Sari not too far behind. They had only gotten a short distance when they noticed one of them was absent. Both turned their heads back toward Grimlock. Prowl hadn't moved from where he stood. He seemed to be frozen.

"Prowl, run!" Bumblebee shouted.

Still the ninja didn't move. Sari turned around and headed back, forcing Bumblebee to follow. His hands activated into stingers. He raised his hands and fired at the Dinobot. The bolts missed. Now Prowl did look back. "Stop, Bumblebee!" he ordered.

"What?!" Both Bee and Sari stopped in mid run. They stared at Prowl who stared back. "Wait!" he said forcefully.

Just then, before either could protest, Grimlock came right up to Prowl and let out an ear splitting roar. Prowl stood his ground. "Grimlock!" he shouted. "It's me, Prowl!"

Grimlock either hadn't heard him or didn't believe him. He roared again and glared down at the small techno organic ninja.

"Get out of there, Prowl!" Sari ordered. "He's not buying it."

But Prowl stood his ground. "Grimlock, listen to me," he said, saying each word slowly so he could be understood perfectly. "It's me, Prowl. The one who saved you. I brought you here, remember?" he put out his hand. "I saved you from Meltdown."

"Little man, lies!" Grimlock suddenly exploded, startling Prowl so badly he nearly fell over. "Me Grimlock, destroy lying little man!"

"Grimlock!" Prowl shouted. "I'm not lying!"

But the Dinobot was no longer listening. He transformed into robot mode and pulled out his flaming sword. "Prowl, look out!" Sari shouted.

He looked over his shoulder at them. Sari rushed forward, seeing the look of disbelief on his face. She opened her hands and shot a blue orb of energy at the angry Dinobot. Grimlock took the blast in the shoulder and roared with pain. Taking advantage of his distraction, Sari ran forward and grabbed Prowl's arm. "Come on!" she turned and led him, stumbling and staggering, back the way they'd come.

"Me Grimlock, destroy!" they heard the Dinobot yell.

"Let's get out of here!" Bumblebee shouted, coming up beside them. Instantly he grabbed both techno organics off the ground and transformed, shoving them both inside the interior of his car mode, Prowl landed half sitting on the seats, with Sari on his lap. Then, with engines roaring, Bumblebee took off driving at speeds he'd never reached before.

"I can't believe he attacked me," Prowl said, as he and Sari moved out of that awkward position.

"Well what did you expect?" She asked him, climbing onto the passenger side and strapping in. "Flowers?"

"I thought I'd be able to convince him..." his voice trailed off.

She shot him a sympathetic stare. "Maybe it just wasn't the right time," she suggested.

"No," he said, shaking his head. "I'm just going to have to accept that I won't be able to convince him I am who I am, not in this body anyway."

* * *

Megatron heard his cell door open and looked up. The big white and red Autobot guard named Skyfire glared down at him. "What do you want?" the Decepticon demanded.

"You have a visitor," he snapped. "Though, if I were in charge, you never would have been given the privilege."

"But you are not in charge," Megatron smirked. "You're just a lap dog that follows orders."

Skyfire sneered. "Still have an attitude, I see," he said. "In a matter of days you won't be saying anything anymore. You're day is coming, Decepticon. And not soon enough."

"Then what are you so worried about?"

The guard laughed. "Me, worried?" he said. "I'm not worried about anything." he gestured with his finger. "Now c'mere. I gotta make sure you're secure and can't get away before I take you to see your visitor."

Megatron stood and walked over to the taller robot. He wasn't even going to bother getting away, not just yet. Now wasn't the right time for it. So he let the sour faced guard cuff his hands behind his back and lead him to one of the visitation rooms. When he'd been brought to the stockade he'd been missing an arm. The arm he'd lost when the Omega clone had exploded. As he'd been led to his cell a green colored femmbot with a familiar design had burst into the hall and started shouting at the guards. Something that had to do with the fact that badly damaged robots didn't function well and looked bad on the screen. Of course she didn't care about his well being. She, like all the other sour faced Autobots, only cared about image.

Well what did he care? He was actually grateful for it because it would prove to be to his advantage in the future. If the nursebot had had the ability to see into the future she would have thought twice about fixing the damage. But she didn't so she fixed him, unaware of what this would help him accomplish later.

When they reached the room the guard waited for him to sit down then uncuffed his arms and shackled the to the table. He did the same with Megatron's ankles but only he secured them to the chair which was bolted into the floor. When he was finished, he crossed the room and allowed the visitor to enter. The visitor, a robot that was almost totally black in color stepped inside. Megatron looked up, he'd never seen this transformer before.

"Give me an hour please," the visitor said to the guard.

Skyfire started to argue but he saw something in the visitor's gray optics that made him stop. "Only an hour," the robot said again, his voice a low monotone.

"Fine," the guard consented. "an hour and that's it."

The visitor thanked the guard. Skyfire exited through the door the visitor had come in. When he was sure the guard wouldn't come back, in the visitor sat down at the other end of the table. "Hello, Megatron," he said.

Megatron stared at him, suspiciously. "Do I know you?"

"No," the visitor answered. "But I am one of yours."

The Decepticon Commander gave him a once over. "If that were true you would be in here with me."

"I don't make it obvious," the other transformer told him, shrugging. "Being fractionless proves to be an advantage. Of course my frame might not have either mark but we both know what I really am."

"Do we?"

"We do," he replied. "I am Dragstrip. I was given the task of getting in here and letting you know that we are nearly ready to get you out."

That piece of news interested the Decepticon Commander. This might just be the chance he'd been waiting for. "And how do you intend to do that?" he questioned.

"We did a little infiltrating," Dragstrip answered. "We sent in one of our own to search for any potential inside help," he grinned. "We found one. It wasn't easy but we came upon one guard that looked very promising."

Megatron raised an eye ridge. "Oh really?"

"Really," the black robot replied. "and, get this, he was actually sympathetic about what is happening to you. He was heard arguing with his comrades that you not getting a fair trial was wrong." the visitor smirked. "He thinks you should get the same rights as everyone else. But that's not likely to happen, not with the way the government is."

The gears in Megatron's processor were beginning to turn. A beginnings of a new plan began to form in his mainframe. "This is quite interesting," he told him. "It's a shame I can't help him along in his disillusionment."

Dragstrip grinned like the Mad Hatter. "We thought of that too," he said. He opened a container in his chest and pulled something out. It was a small black rectangle. "We figured you might want to use this. The other one is already attached to him computer. At around 1 o'clock tonight he will return to his apartment. If you wish to speak with him you can contact him then."

Megatron also smiled as he reached out and grasped the object in his newly attached hand. "Oh, I intend to," he said. "I wouldn't miss it for all the energon in the mines."

* * *

Bumblebee started to drive back to the freighter but Prowl decided he didn't want to leave yet. "No," he protested. "Not now! I want to try again."

"Are you crazy?" Bumblebee demanded. "That crazy lizard almost squashed you! Why would you want to try again?"

"Because I think I might be able to convince him this time."

"No way, Prowl," the yellow Autobot said. "I'm not going back there. Besides, there's no way you can make him realize who you are. He's too stupid."

"He is _not_ stupid!"

"Fine, slow then. But either way; I'm not going back."

"Fine then," Prowl snapped. "Let me out and I'll go back by myself." he rested his hand on the door handle and made as if to open it.

"Are you crazy?" Sari exclaimed, grabbing his arm. "There's no way we're going to let you do that!"

He gave her a look. "Let go of my arm," he ordered.

"Is it really worth it?" she demanded. "Are you really that desperate to prove who you are to everyone? Look Prowl, you're just going to have to learn that not everybody is going to know who you are. Grimlock isn't very smart, you know that. He's not going to be able to figure it out. Not the way you want him to."

"Then how do you expect me to make him realize who I am?" he asked of her.

"Maybe you can force him to recognize you," Bumblebee suggested suddenly.

Prowl looked down at the dashboard. "Yeah? Like how?"

There was a smile in Bumblebee's voice as he said. "By the magical touch."

"What is _that _supposed to mean?"

"Try giving him a good kick," Bumblebee said. "That should do it."

"Bee, he's not you," Sari informed him. "Beating up on Grimlock is not going to do anything but make him even more angry."

"Fine," he said, a pout in his voice. "Then what do you suggest, smarty pants?"

"An alternate approach," she said. "But not yelling at him as he charges toward us or beating him up. Let's do it more gentle."

Prowl gave her a doubtful look. Grimlock and the other Dinobots were hard to speak to that way. They didn't like unwanted visitors on their island and attacked without an pravocation because they were terriorial. "How do you intend to do that?" he asked her.

She grinned at him. "Simple," she replied. "We'll use a hologram."

"A hologram?!"

"Yeah, you had one."

"Sari, I hate to break it to you but this new body doesn't come equipped with that option."

She grinned. "That's okay," she replied, taking something out of her pocket. "I brought one with me."

He looked at the tiny projector doubtfully. "What do you intend to do with it?" he asked.

"Simple." and then she began to lay out her plan.

* * *

Grimlock had lost track of the three invaders. He'd been able to keep up with them until the yellow robot had gone into car mode and roared off. He'd chased them a little further but then they'd disappeared over the top of the crater and out of sight. For a moment he'd stood at the top of the crator and looked for the yellow vehicle. He hadn't seen it. He had seen the freighter moored on the dock but hadn't bothered going after it. The boat was on the water and didn't pose any threat anyway. He was used to seeing it. It went by the island almost every day.

Satisfied he'd turned around and gone back down the crator and back into the forest, feeling a sense of satisfaction wash over him. He'd gotten rid of the intruders and the lying human who claimed to be his friend. Grimlock knew what Prowl looked like and that human hadn't fit the bill at all, even if his color scheme had been familiar.

But that little bit of information seemed to pass in one audio receptor and out the other. Grimlock hadn't been created with a high amount of intelligence so the fact didn't even make him pause. He headed back to the remains of the cave lab that Meltdown then Blackarachnia had occupied. It was much smaller now since Waspinator's body explosion had blown it to smithereens but he and the other Dinobots, only Swoop and himself now, used as a kind of base of operations.

* * *

Bumblebee had turned himself around on Sari's bidding and, thanks to Prowl's excellent memory, found the cave entrance. Of course they didn't get close to it. Bee parked himself and then the three friends spied on it from behind a large patch of trees. A few moments later Grimlock arrived at the cave.

"Okay," Sari said, ducking behind the tree. "Let's do this thing."

The two guys weren't so sure. "I don't know-," Prowl began.

"Oh come on!" she cut him off. "We've come this far so let's go all the way." she pressed the power button on the holoprojector and aimed it toward the cave. 'This might be your last chance. Now start talking."

Prowl sighed then turned toward the Dinobot and began to speak.

* * *

"Grimlock."

The Dinobot, upon hearing his name being called, turned his head. A few yards away, by a grove of trees stood Prowl. Or the way Prowl _used_to look anyway. "Bike-bot, back," he said, starting toward the cyber ninja. "Where Bike-bot been hiding?"

* * *

Prowl looked at Sari. "He's coming over here!" he whispered. "What now?"

"Just keep talking," she ordered. "Pretend you're a spirit or something."

"What!?"

They didn't have time to argue, she could see the Dinobot out of the corner of her eye. He was still moving forward. "Just do it!"

* * *

Stop!"

Grimlock stopped in his tracks and stared at the ninja. He looked confused.

"Don't come any closer," Prowl ordered.

The Dinobot was offended. "Bike-bot no order, me Grimlock, around!" he roared.

"But I am not Prowl," the cyber ninja said. "Not anymore. I am only a projection of my former self. I have come to tell you that I am back on the planet but I no longer look like this."

"Huh?"

"I have a new body now," the cyber ninja told him. "I am much smaller. I've become human."

Now Grimlock looked completely confused. "What Bike-bot saying?"

"I no longer look like this. I will show you my new self." and then the hologram vanished and Prowl stepped out into the open. "This is me. This is how I look now."

Grimlock didn't move. He looked like he was trying to let the fact sink in. Suddenly he walked toward Prowl. The cyber ninja froze. The Dinobot stood in front of him then leaned down and gave him a good sniff. Prowl felt his hair lift up then fall back into place. Suddenly the Grimlock's expression changed and he smiled. "Bike-bot good," he said. He cocked his head and gave him another look. "But what happened to Bike-bot? Bike-bot looks different than, me Grimlock, remembers."

"That's a bit hard to explain," Prowl said.

Grimlock started laughing. "Bike-bot look funny," he laughed. "Me Grimlock, scared Bike-bot earlier. Me Grimlock, should have known Bike-bot was Bike-bot." he laughed some more. "Bike-bot still had the same colors!"

_If that is so obvious why does it take so long for me to prove who I am to everyone? _he wondered.

"What Bike-bot want?" Grimlock asked, calming down.

"Nothing really," he replied. "I just wanted to see how you all were doing."

"Me Grimlock, doing okay," he replied. "Dinobots back in good terms with each other again."

"So that means you're not angry at Snarl anymore?"

"Snarl redeem himself. Chase Construction-bot off island." Grimlock looked very happy about that.

"I see." _I guess he doesn't like the Constructicons that much either. _

* * *

A few hours later Bumblebee, Prowl, and Sari said goodbye to the Dinobots and headed back to the freighter. "At least that ends one problem," Prowl said as Bumblebee, in car mode, drove them back up the crater.

"Yeah," Sari agreed. "But now I'm hungry. When we get back to Detroit why don't we go out get something to eat?"

Prowl was willing to admit that he was hungry as well. "Sounds like a good idea," he agreed. "What did you have in mind?"

"How about the Burger Bot?" she suggested. The face he made caused her to add quickly. "You can order a salad. They added those to the menu last year. For health nuts, like you."

"Okay," he said, nodding. "Sounds fine to me." then he added. "and when we're finished there I would like to speak with your father."

She blinked. "About what?"

"About him maybe building me my own transportation," he answered.

"What's wrong with us transporting you around?" Bumblebee wanted to know. He sounded offended.

"It's got nothing to do with you or the others," he told him. "I just don't want to be a burden. If I have my own vehicle." he looked at Sari. "Maybe one like the type Professor Sumdac made for Sari I wouldn't have to ask for a lift all the time. Besides, I'm sure you and the others have more important things to do and I doubt you would be so willing to take me places every where in the future. You might think it was annoying so I'm taking care of that problem before it happens."

"Oh," Bee said after a moment. "I get it now."

"I'm glad you understand."

"Yeah, yeah."

_A/N_

_At the Dinobot island visit part I considered two options. Have Grimlock not believe him or have Grimlock recognize him. It was very hard to figure out which option to chose because both options had interesting results. So after considering it I decided to do both. _

_Can you guess who this disillusioned Autobot cop is? It shouldn't be too hard to figure out. _

_I didn't want to do a lot of dragging on the Dinobot island in this chapter so yeah... I hope it wasn't too weird or anything. Grimlock is a bit hard to work with. His speech patterns are complicated. _

_XD Prowl still smells like a robot. _


	6. Chapter 6

_Brief note: Time frames on Earth and Cybertron are not in sync. Things happening on Cybertron are under a different clock. So it can be night time on Cybertron and still daytime on Earth. _

CHAPTER6

Bumblebee pulled into the Burger Bot a few hours later.

"I gotta head back to the plant," he told Prowl and Sari as they climbed out. "I'll be back in an hour."

Prowl wondered what he had to go back to the plant for but didn't ask.

"All right," Sari said, turning back to the Autobot youth and nodding. "Then you can take us to see my dad."

Bumblebee agreed to that and pulled out of the parking lot. Sari looked at Prowl. "Let's eat."

A few minutes later the two techno organics were seated at a table by the window, eating their lunches. "So, Prowl," Sari said, sipping vanilla shake. Something Prowl had said earlier was bothering her and she wanted to get an explanation."What's the real reason for wanting to talk to my Dad?"

"I told you already," Prowl said, stirring his salad around with a fork. He'd eaten some but it wasn't that great. The lettuce tasted funny. "I don't want to ask for a ride every time I want to go places."

She cocked her head. "Is that the _real _reason?" she pressed.

"Yes," he insisted, lifting his fork and scrutinizing the limp lettuce leaves at the end. "I want my own transportation. Much as I appreciate them giving me a lift it could get to be annoying, not just for me but for them as well."

"Oh, I see," she said, leaning back. "It has nothing to do with pride then."

"Well maybe a little," he admitted.

"I knew it."

"But there's more too it than that," he told her.

"You're feeling like a burden to them now," she concluded.

He started to deny it. "No-"

"Don't lie to me, Prowl," she cut him off. "I've been around you long enough to know how you are. Ever since you've become like me you've been different. You already told me you feel things more. I know you always wanted to know what it was like to be human and now that you are, it's hard for you to adapt to it."

He looked away.

"It's all right, Prowl," she went on. "I understand. You're so used to being a machine who can do things for himself that this new life is a bit hard to adjust to. We all knew you wouldn't get used to it instantly. It would take time." she reached across the table and put her hand on his, covering it. He looked down at it then up at her. She had leaned toward him and he could see right into her big blue eyes. "It's okay. I get it. You don't have to hide your problems from me. Just be honest." she smiled. "Don't worry. Anything you tell me will stay between us. After all; Us techno organics have to stick together."

He gave her a small smile then went back to eating his salad which tasted like it had been dipped in stale motor oil.

"Well, well. Look what we have here," said a voice.

Prowl lifted his head. He saw a small group of teenage girls walking toward the table. All were blonds and by the smell of chemicals coming from their hair he could tell that it was fake. Sari looked over her shoulder and spotted the girls. "Oh great," he heard her mutter.

"What?" he asked.

Before she could give him an answer the blonds stopped at the table. "Hello, Sari," the one in the front said, looking at her.

"Hello, Margo," Sari muttered not even looking at her. She kept her eyes on her meal.

Prowl could sense a kind of tension crackling between them. It made him nervous. Margo lifted her head and looked right at him. "And who is this?" she asked.

"I'm Prowl," he replied. "Pleased to meet you."

Margo gave him a look. "That's a strange name," she commented.

"It's my name," he said defensively.

Margo looked back at Sari. "This your boyfriend?" she asked her.

Prowl gaped at her. "What?"

"No," Sari told her. "He's just a very good friend."

Margo smirked. "I knew it," she said. "Somebody like you could never attract anybody." she looked back at him. "Especially one as cute as him."

"That's not very nice," Prowl said, giving her the Look he usually reserved for Bumblebee.

The Look had no affect on her. "It doesn't have to be nice if it's true." the girl rested her arms on the table and leaned her face close to his. "You don't want to get involved with her. She's a freak of nature. Only last fall she was a little girl of nine years. You wouldn't want to go out with somebody who ages that quickly would you?"

Before he could reply she straightened up and turned away. She put a hand on his shoulder. "If you know what's good for you," she said as an after thought. "You'd avoid her."

Then she and her friends walked off. Prowl watched them go then looked at Sari who was focusing her full attention on her food. "What was that about?" he wanted to know.

"Nothing important," she replied, picking at her fries. "Just a little problem I have to deal with."

"You shouldn't let her say things like that about you," he told her indignant.

"Why not?" she questioned, looking up at him. "You know it's true and, if they knew what you are, they'd say the same things and you wouldn't be able to deny them either."

"I know that," he responded. "But even if it is true you still shouldn't let them act that way toward you. That's not like you at all."

She sighed. "I know that but what can I do about it? It's not like I can hurt them. I still have to obey the law."

"I never said you had to hurt them," he pointed out. "Maybe you could show them that, though this happened to you, you're no different than before."

"Except I'm not longer a child," she muttered. Before he could say anything to that she changed the subject. "Why don't we get out of here and head to the Tower? I'm sure my dad will be finished with his work by now."

He almost said something about their previous topic then decided against it and nodded. "All right," he said. He stood up. "This salad wasn't doing anything for me anyway."

After disposing of their half eaten lunches, they stepped outside. Sari called Bumblebee who promised to be there in a few minutes. "Don't worry about what happened in there, Prowl," she said, looking at him and smiling nervously. "It's really no big deal."

He could have argued with that but decided to keep his mouth shut. If she didn't want to dwell on it he would have to just drop it. If anything else came of it he could deal with it later. He knew it wasn't any of his business but he also didn't want Sari to have more trouble than she deserved. _If it happens again I might just have a little talk with those females._

A short time later Bumblebee pulled up in front of the fast food place and the two techno organics climbed inside. He backed out of the parking lot and headed toward the tower.

"What if your father isn't finished for the day?" Prowl asked her.

"Don't worry about it," she told him. "If I tell him it's important he'll stop whatever he's doing and help us." she put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure he'll be willing to make you something."

* * *

"What!?" Professor Sumdac stared at them in disbelief. "You want me to _what_?!"

"Build Prowl a motorcycle," Sari replied.

"And how do you expect me to do that?" he wanted to know.

"The way you do everything," she said. folding her arms. She locked eyes with him. "What? Can't you do it?"

"I can do it," he assured her. "But why does he even want one? Why does he need one? Can't the Autobots drive him around?"

"They can," Prowl spoke up, glancing briefly at Bumblebee who had come into the Tower with them. "But I don't want to feel like I'm taking them for granite. I want my own vehicle so I don't have to ask them for a lift every time I want to go somewhere. I have this feeling that they won't be so willing to drive me around in the future. I don't want to start coming off as a nuisance."

"How do you know that?" Bumblebee demanded. He was leaning against the wall with his arms folded. "We could. Just because you're a human thing now doesn't mean we won't be willing to help you out."

Prowl gave him that look. "For one thing; you're not the most generous bot and the others have other things to worry about," he pointed out. "You are young and selfish and think video games are more important than anything else. Optimus still has to deal with Cybertronian problems so I don't think he'll want to drive me around. Bulkhead has other things on his mind and a painting to complete and if I ask him he'll be angry. Also Ratchet is the least likely person to ask to take me anywhere because he's not exactly the happiest Autobot on Cybertron." he smirked. "That is how I know."

Bumblebee looked away. "Well maybe you're right," he admitted. "But still. We _are _willing to take you places."

"But not all the time," the cyber ninja pointed out. "and I don't expect you to. This is why I want my own mode of transportation, so we don't have that problem. If I had my own I wouldn't make a pest of myself asking to be taken places. I can just take my vehicle and go."

"Do you even know how to drive?" Professor Sumdac questioned, bringing up an important point.

Prowl looked at him. "Drive?" he asked, sounding confused.

"Yes, you know," the inventor explained. "Getting behind the wheel and steering it."

That sounded complicated. He had a brief flashback of what had happened in Soundwave's dream universe. Driving wasn't as easy as it looked. "Can't you just make it self propelled?"

"I could but what would happen if the auto-drive program got a malfunction?" the professor wanted to know. "You would be stuck in the middle of nowhere and would have no way of getting anywhere because you wouldn't be able to steer it yourself."

"So what do you suggest I do?" Prowl asked.

"I think, before I built this bike for you that you should get a drivers licence."

"A _what_?" he looked at Sari. "What's that?"

"It's something people get so they are able to drive a car," she explained. "Before you get it you have to study for it then take a drivers test. Before you take that test though you have to learn how to do everything in a car. Like how to turn the blinker on and where to put your hands on the steering wheel. Once you're done with that you take the test and see how it goes from there."

The whole thing sounded long and complicated. "How long will this take?" he asked her.

"Not very long," she told him. "Maybe a day or two but only if you start now and don't put it off."

He frowned. "But I don't want to wait," he began to protest.

"I'm afraid you'll have to," Isaac told him. "Even if I started on this vehicle you want now it could take awhile to complete it. I would suggest getting ready for it. It would help you pass the time."

"I have the Drivers Ed book on my room," Sari said, taking his hand. "You can borrow it." she pulled on his hand and led him off. "If we start now you're likely to have it done in no time. After all you're smarter than normal human beings so this should be a breeze for you."

Bumblebee watched them go. Professor Sumdac noticed the look on his face. "What's wrong, Bumblebee?" he asked him.

"Nothing," the yellow Autobot answered, looking down at the inventor. "But I get the feeling that I'm being kept out of the loop here."

"I don't know what you tell you," he said. "Since Prowl is like Sari now she feels it is her duty to teach him how to do things people do all the time. I guess she figures since you're not like them, you can't be of much help in this area."

"I guess," Bee said, looking back down the hall. _But I get the feeling there might be more to it than that._

_

* * *

_

Megatron was back in his cell. After his conversation with Dragstrip, Skyfire had taken him back to his cell and locked him in. Before the Autobot left to attend other duties he'd made a snide comment. Megatron turned to retort but the large white and red Autobot had already left. All well.

He sat on his recharge berth and stared at the tiny communications devise Dragstrip had given him. It was set to tune into the frequency of one Cybertronian police officer. Megatron did not know this officers name. Dragstrip had not given it to him. He would have to find this out himself when he spoke to the Autobot.

He read the tiny chronominer on the screen. It was still too early to tap into the frequency. He would have to wait a little longer.

But how was he even sure he could trust this person? What if this whole thing was a set up? What if it was planned? A trap to incriminate him further?

It could be but Megatron was willing to chance it. Even if it wasn't true it wouldn't matter either way. He could avoid talking to him and be killed anyway or he could speak with this Autobot and get the same fate. Or he could speak with this Autobot and convince him to have him released. He wouldn't be sure of the outcome until he tried.

And he was running out of time.

He looked back at the clock. The small number clicked to the new hour. One o'clock. It was time.

He pressed the button.

* * *

The officer had just returned to his apartment and sat down to relax when his computer screen suddenly lit up. The sound made him turn his head toward it. An image took up the entire frame. He stared at it, finding himself looking into the red opticed gaze of Megatron. "Greetings, my friend," the Decepticon Commander said.

The officer stared at him. "How did you get this frequency?" he demanded.

"From a friend," Megatron replied impassively. "My friend told me you are sympathetic of my plight so I decided I wanted to speak to you."

"What? How would they-"

"It is not important," Megatron cut him off. "It is not my agenda. I am only speaking with you because of the information I was given. If you do not wish to speak to me I will cut the feed and we can both pretend I never spoke to you."

"Don't do that," the officer said, getting up. He walked over to the computer desk and sat down in the chair. "I want to speak with you. I've been wanting to for awhile. I was denied any kind of contact with you because of how I felt and my superior does not wish to be embarrassed."

"Ah, the legendary Autobot ego," Megatron commented. "You would cause a problem."

"I don't care what they think," the officer informed him angrily. "I know communism when I see it. They intend to send me away to another stockade if I voice my opinons about it again. They know I am right. The way they are treating you is wrong. You should be given the same rights as everyone else. Just because of your reputation they think you don't deserve it. I think you do."

Megatron nodded. "I couldn't agree more," he said. "But that is just the way the government is. Who am I to question it? This is what made me what I am today to begin with."

"I heard about that," the officer told him, resting his arms on the desk and leaning forward. "You were right about how you felt. The way they were treating those who were not of their own fraction was wrong. Why do differences of opinion have to result in wars?"

"Because that is just how things work."

"Well I'm not going to let them get away with it! I'm going to do something about it."

"What do you intend to do?"

"I don't know..." he replied, looking away. "I haven't thought of anything yet."

"May I make a suggestion?"

The officer looked at him curiously.

"As you know they intend to extinguish my spark in a matter of weeks. Once I am gone there will be nobody left to question them. I will be made the ultimate example. They will let the public know that if they ever question the High Council's authority the same thing will happen to them. If you wish to prevent that from happening you would be wise to do me a little favor."

The officer looked right at him. "What kind of favor?"

"Oh, nothing too hard," Megatron replied, smiling. "Just something that will ensure that my legecy does not die with me."

"What did you have in mind?"

The Decepticon explained.

* * *

A half hour later Megatron signed off. He sighed, feeling a sense of satisfaction wash over him. It had taken some time and carefully worded frazes but he'd finally been able to convince the Autobot officer that the only way to keep the Autobots from silencing different opinions and free thinking was by helping him escape the stockade. The officer, who went by the name of Barricade, promised to help him, provided he did not do anything that would make him regret it.

Megatron promised that he would do nothing of the sort but they both knew that he was lying. Even with this truth the Autobot agreed then signed off, telling him he'd get it done in a matter of days.

_It won't be long now... Soon those Autobos will pay for getting in my way. I will make them regret it, starting with the ones responsible for my bad luck. _Images of what he was going to do to Optimus Prime and the rest of the Autobots flashed through his mind and he smiled. It was a shame that that annoying cyber ninja was no longer functional. He would have enjoyed ripping that little nuisance's spark out of his chest with his bare hands.

* * *

Prowl flipped through the drivers ed book. It was full of all the rules of the road. Like what diamond shaped signs meant and what the green arrow on the street lights stood for. He sighed and closed the book. This he already knew.

"What's wrong?" Sari asked, from her computer desk. After she'd given Prowl the book to look over she'd sat down and seemed to content with just watching him.

"I don't see why I have to study this," he told her, hitting the book's cover lightly with the back of his left hand. "I know all the rules. I've followed them when I was a robot. They are engraved in my memory."

"I know," she said, spinning her chair around as if to entertain herself. "But this is just a refresher. I know you know the rules but I think you should study this to keep them fresh in your mind and you don't like, you know, forget them when you take the test. You can't exactly get your license until you take the permit test."

"Why can't I just learn to drive?" he wanted to know. "Why do I have to take a traffic rules test before I am able to learn to drive?"

"I don't know," she answered, shrugging. "That's just how it is. Maybe they want you to learn the rules of the road before you actually get _on_ the road."

He sighed and opened the book again. "I still think it doesn't make sense."

"Well after you take the test maybe Dad can teach you," she suggested, draping her one leg over the other. "I would but I'm not old enough. You have to be over twenty-one to teach somebody how to drive."

"How come?"

"I don't know. Maybe they think anyone after that age is responsible."

"But Professor Sumdac probably doesn't have time to teach me," he told her. "He has to work on my vehicle remember."

"Well who else do you want to teach you?" she questioned, leaning toward him and making a face. "Captain Fanzone?"

Prowl hadn't considered asking him. "He could work," he said, thoughtfully.

"Forget it," she cut him off. "He was the first person to teach me to drive because Dad was busy."

"Oh?" Prowl gave her a curious look. "How did you do?"

She rolled her eyes heavenward and shrugged. "Let me just say it didn't go very well. He won't teach anyone how to drive anymore. Even if you two are friends I don't think he'd be willing. The way you look now screams "teenager"."

He looked into the mirror. "It does?" he asked, scrutinizing his face. He didn't really know what a "teenager" was supposed to look like exactly. Being a robot made age kind of nonexistent.

"Well you don't look like a man in your forties," she told him. "Nor a thing like your hologram."

He knew that. "But teenager?"

"Okay, early twenties." she consented. "Let's just say you look like a young man with a lot of years ahead of him."

He stared at himself, putting a hand on his cheek and rubbing the skin. "Fascinating."

"All right," she cut in. "You can stare at yourself later, Mr. Vanity. Let's get back to the divers book."

He tore his gaze from the mirror and looked into the book again. "You never know," he told her. "Captain Fanzone might be willing to teach me."

She scrunched up her nose. "Don't count on it."

"Well I'll ask him anyway."

"Good luck," she said. She crossed the room and sat down beside him. "But let's get this done first. So he won't have any excuses when you do."

* * *

Awhile later Prowl and Professor Sumdac were looking through the Professors work folder, mentally constructing the vehicle he wanted. Prowl had finished reading the divers education book in a relatively short time and was just setting it aside when the Professor had come into the room and said he wanted him to look at prototypes. Prowl, wanting his own mode of transportation as soon as possible, willingly went with him, following him into his office and standing behind him as he sat down behind his desk and booted up his high speed computer.

"How about this one?" Isaac Sumdac asked, clicking on one of the images.

Prowl leaned forward, studying the vehicle. It looked similar to the bike he'd chosen as his vehicle mode except this was of civilian make and didn't have the alarm lights. The prototype looked like a nearly complete motorcycle. A caption box above it had the words "Kawasaki" and "ninja". He almost smirked. How appropriate. "It'll work," he told him. "But will it look exactly like that when you are finished?"

"Not exactly," Professor Sumdac told him. "This is just the inner frame. Before I start building it, you need to chose the accessories. Like what kind of modifications you want. What sort of additions do you have in mind?"

Prowl thought about that for a moment. Finding the right frame was the easy part. Choosing the mods was a little more complicated. "I know I want it to be able to project holograms," he told him. "But as for the rest I don't know right now." he looked at the professor. "Can I think about it and tell you later?"

Sumdac nodded, he wasn't in a hurry. "Take you time," he told him. "Before I can start you need to get your permit anyway. When do you plan on getting it?"

"As soon as I can," Prowl replied. "I'm pretty sure I'll be able to pass but my only problem is what comes after."

"Oh?"

"I have to be taught how to drive," the cyber ninja told him. "But I have to have somebody over twenty one teach me. Sari suggested I ask you."

Professor Sumdac didn't say a word. He kept his eyes on the computer screen, his right hand moving the mouse and manipulating the image on the screen. Adding things, then removing them.

"Professor?" Prowl said, cocking his head and giving him a look. "Did you hear me?"

Sumdac looked at him. "Yes," he told him. "I heard you but I am afraid I wouldn't be much help in teaching you that."

"Why not? Can't you drive?"

"I can drive," Sumdac replied. "I just don't know if I would be able to teach you how."

"Well didn't you teach Sari?"

"By the time I agreed to help her she already knew how," he replied. "She asked one of my employees to teach her."

"Oh," Prowl looked away. "So you wouldn't be willing to teach me?"

"It's not that I'm not willing," Sumdac said quickly. "It's just that I don't think I have the patience for it."

"Well if you have the patience to build all of this technology why can't you teach me to drive?"

"I don't know..." Isaac added another feature to the prototype them removed it. "If you put it that way.... I guess I could teach you."

"You don't have to if you don't want to," Prowl told him. "Like I said: Sari suggested it. I don't want to be a burden or anything. If you are too busy I can ask Captain Fanzone."

"It''s all right," Professor Sumdac said, taking his eyes off the screen. "You're not being a burden asking me. I'll teach you to drive. Believe me when I say this; you don't want to ask Captain Fanzone. Even if you two are pretty good friends he won't teach you. He doesn't want his car wrecked worse than it already has been."

Prowl's face lifted with a slight smile. "Sari's doing?"

Professor Sumdac chuckled. "She told you about that, didn't she?"

The cyber ninja nodded.

"So give me a few minutes," Sumdac said, clicking out of the page. "I'll take you down to the place and after you pass your test I'll teach you to drive."

"Don't worry about taking me down," Prowl told him. "Sari already asked Bumblebee. He's going to take me there." he smiled. "You just worry about my motorcycle, okay?"

"All right..."

"Thank you."

_A/N_

_Marshall, how did you know I was going to make him have to get a drivers licence? lol great minds think alike. Incase you might not know... Barricade was never mentioned in the Transformers Animated universe, unlike Blackout. Since he was a police vehicle in the movies I decided to make him an Autobot police officer that Megatron takes advantage of. This Autobot is not an Autobot from other universes that got "converted" he's a Decepticon that is being used as an Autobot who becomes a "traitor" and maybe even later a Decepticon. I won't get further into it right now because I am still working on it. Yes, Sari does have her driver's license. _

_Here's something weird I noticed. I recently came upon a certain make of motorcycle that had a familiar design. With a little comparison I have come to the conclusion that the make and model of Prowl's vehicle mode was a Kawasaki Ninja which is kind of appropriate, don't you think? So yeah that's the make a model of choice for his soon to be made mode of transportation. XD_


	7. Chapter 7

CHAPTER 7

Later, after Prowl took his drivers test, which he passed and was able to obtain his permit, Bumblebee drove him back to Sumdac Tower. Sari had wanted to come with him when he left to take it but he didn't think Professor Sumdac would be willing to let her go. Besides it was close to dinner time anyway and he didn't want her to miss it. So he just didn't tell her he'd left. He figured he'd say something about it when he got back.

"So what did they say?" Bumblebee asked, as they drove down Main Street.

Prowl looked down at the steering wheel. An orb built next to it flashed every time Bumblebee spoke. "What did who say?" the cyber ninja wanted to know.

"The humans that gave you the test. Did they say anything about your score?"

"Yeah, they said they had never met a single person who took the test that got every question right on the very first try." Prowl told him. He rested his right leg on his right one and folded his arms, after pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "Though I don't understand why they had to act so strange about it. I went in there and took the test and when I was finished the person gave me this really confusing look. It seemed almost like he expected me to not know any of that stuff."

"That's weird," Bumblebee commented. "Why would he not want you to pass the test? If he didn't think you would pass it why did he let you take it?"

"I have no idea," Prowl said, looking out the window. "When we get back to the tower I think I'll ask Sari. She'll know."

"Yeah, she probably will." _She seems to know the answers to all your questions. Why can't you just stop asking so many?_

* * *

The minutes later Bumblebee pulled up in front of the Tower. Prowl climbed out and headed inside. Bee transformed and followed, ducking his head to avoid hitting it on the entrance roof on the way in.

"Prowl!" Sari exclaimed, running toward him. "Where have you been? I've been looking everywhere for you."

He stared at her a moment. She'd been looking for him? For what? "I went to take the test for my permit," he told her. "I thought you knew."

She put her hands on her hips. "No," she replied sourly. "You didn't tell me. I would have gone with you if you had." Her face twisted into a hurt expression.

He suddenly felt bad for not mentioning it. "Sorry."

"How did you do?" she asked, changing the subject.

"I passed," he replied, taking his permit out of his pants pocket and showing it to her. "I didn't miss a single question."

She blinked. "You didn't?" she sounded like she didn't believe him.

"No," he replied, pocketing the permit. "The people at the place all looked at me funny." he pointed at her. "Kind of like how you're looking at me now. Is passing a bad thing?"

"No," she said quickly.

"Then why would they look at me like that?"

She sighed. "It's way too hard to explain," she replied. She grabbed his hand and started to lead him away. "Come on. Let's tell Dad that you passed."

As she led him away he became aware of Bumblebee's optics boring into his back. He looked over his shoulder. The young Autobot was giving them both a funny look. He looked annoyed. _What's that all about? _the cyber ninja wondered.

But he didn't have time to ask because Sari pulled him into the elevator and the doors shut behind him, closing on the image of Bumblebee's annoyed and slightly hurt expression.

* * *

Professor Sumdac stared at him."You passed?" his voice held more than a hint of disbelief.

"Yeah," Sari replied, putting a hand on Prowl's arm. "He didn't make a single mistake on the test." she sounded proud and she hadn't even taken the test.

Isaac let that sink in for a moment. "So you have your permit?"

Prowl nodded, taking the piece of paper out of his pocket. "Now I just need to learn how to drive," he said. "By the way; how are you doing on my motor cycle?"

"I've started it but I still need you to tell me what exactly you want on it," the inventor told him. He put a hand on his back and started to lead him away. "Why don't you show me now? It's getting late and I don't drive in the dark."

"All right," Prowl relented, letting the inventor lead him into his office.

"After that you can head back to the plant," Sumdac said, yawning. "I'll teach you to drive tomorrow morning. Can you be here tomorrow, say around ten?"

Prowl didn't have anything else to do. "Yes. I'll be here."

* * *

Barricade was feeling nervous. He looked over his shoulder as he walked down the empty corridors of the Autobot stockade. It was late hours and only a few Autobots were around, mostly just the security crew. He wasn't even supposed to be there, his request for overtime work had been denied.

He already knew why. It only helped with the descition he'd made.

He saw nobody else in the hallway. That was a relief but he still had one problem to deal with before he could fulfill his mission. The security monitors. He would have to figure out a way to disable them without anyone knowing he was there. That would prove to be complicated. He would have to sneak into the room with all the monitors and take out whoever was on duty.

Hopefully he wouldn't have any trouble.

But did he really want to do it? He knew if things went bad he'd have to kill the one on duty. Was he sure he would even be able to do such a thing? _Don't think about it. If it winds up happening just do it. Don't even think._

He glanced up at a camera mounted near the ceiling and quickly ducked into a room when it swiveled in his direction. He peeked his head out. The camera swiveled in the opposite direction. Seeing his chance, he quickly dashed down the hall and up the stairs. On the next floor he found the room he was looking for. Glancing around himself again he was relieved to see no other machines in the hall. Sighing, he opened the door and ducked inside.

There was only one Autobot on monitor duty. A robot named Fireflight. He turned his head when he heard somebody step into the room. When he saw who had come in he looked confused. "Barricade?" he said uncertainly. "What are you doing here?"

"I... uh... I was called in to work a later shift," the other Autobot said, thinking quickly. "The chief wanted me to relieve you."

"He did?" Fireflight looked totally confused. "Why wasn't I informed?"

"Because it was a last minute deal," Barricade replied, thinking fast. "He mustn't have had time to contact you."

Fireflight frowned. "I see." he looked back at the screens. "Then I guess if I contacted him now he would confirm it?"

"There's no need to," the other officer said quickly. If Fireflight contacted the Prime in charge of the stockade the jig would be up. "You would only be bothering him."

Fireflight leaned forward as if to type something on the console. "Why don't we make sure," he said.

This was bad. He would have to prevent Fireflight from making that call. "I'm sorry, Fireflight," he said, his lowering a few octives. "I'm afraid I can't let you do that."

Fireflight looked back at him. He saw that the other Autobot had drawn his blaster. "What are you-" he began. But before he could finish the sentense Barricade fired.

Fireflight fell to the floor with a hole in his forehead

Barricade stood still for a moment, his optics wide open, unable to believe what he had just done. He'd never shot anyone before, especially his own comrade. For some reason he didn't feel guilty about it, he felt.... better. He shook his head, dislodging the thoughts. He quickly crossed the room, stepping over the fallen Autobot, trying not to look at Fireflights blank stare, and leaned over the console. He leaned forward and typed out a few commands on the keyboard. A few seconds later all the screens went blank.

A second later all the lights went out.

Barricade stepped away from the console and out of the room. Once he was in the hall he turned and headed down the stairs, taking them three at a time. When he reached the bottom floor he dashed down the hall and into the sector of the prison that housed Megatron's cell. With the lights out everyone would be too busy trying to put them back on to notice what he was doing.

When he reached the cell he pulled out the key card he'd stolen and slid it through the cell's door lock. The lock fell open. A second later Megatron stepped out. He stared down at the Autobot, his red optics glowing brightly. In the dim light he looked like he was smiling. "You've done well," he said, sounding amused. "I didn't think you would make it this far. Looks like I was wrong about you."

"You've better hurry," Barricade said, knowing there wasn't any time to let the compliment go to his head. He was in a hurry. "My comrades will be here soon. If you want to escape you had better do it now."

Megatron gave him another amused look then turned to go. Barricade watched him go, a strange feeling washing over him. He didn't feel the least bit guilty at what he'd done. He felt relieved and strangely exhilarated. Suddenly he heard footsteps coming toward him. He glanced over his shoulder and saw two other Autobots coming down the hall.

"Barricade!" one called to him. "What's going on?"

"The power is out," he answered, turning to face them. By then they'd reached where he stood. "We must have used too much energy."

The other gave him a funny look. "What are you doing here?" he asked him.

"I was called in."

The other's looked at each other. He could tell they didn't believe him. The first one who had spoken looked back at him. "What do you have in your hand?"

Before he could answer the other reached over and yanked it out of his grip. "It's a key card!" he exclaimed, then noticed the open cell door. Megatron's cell. "What have you done?"

Barricade, unable to come up with a good enough answer said nothing. Instead he raised his blaster and fired. The first one took it in the chest. He stared down at the sparking hole in his plating then looked up at Barricade in disbelief before he fell to the floor. The second turned to run. "Help!" he yelled. "Jail break!"

Barricade chased after him, firing his gun as he did. He couldn't let the other robot get away. He threw himself into a flying tackle and smashed into the other Autobot's back. They hit the floor in a tangle.

The other Autobot flipped over and grabbed the gun in both hands, forcing it away from himself. Barricade punched him in the face, making him let go of the weapon. He spun it around and aimed it at his former comrades face. His optics widened in disbelief but before he could say anything Barricade fired.

The Autobot's head exploded, spattering the floor, walls, ceiling, and Barricade with glowing blue oil.

Barricade sighed and lowered the gun. He'd dealt with all the witnesses. He was safe for now.

"Very well done," said a voice behind him.

He stiffened, recognizing the voice. Slowly he looked over his shoulder. Megatron stood right behind him, staring down at him with that amused expression.

"I never thought I would see the day when an Autobot choose self preservation over everything else."

The Autobot officer's mouth fell open but he couldn't say anything. He looked back at the corpse who had just been a living machine moments ago. He had done just that. He'd killed three of his own to keep everyone from knowing he'd been involved. So he could keep his job and nobody would know how Megatron had gotten away.

A hand rested on his shoulder. "But you know," Megatron's voice was close to his audio receptor. "You shouldn't care about what everyone thinks of you. Why should this job be so important? It will only make you stuck fulfilling your existence under the rules of those who oppresses. Do you really want to keep that kind of existance?"

The answer came easy. "No." he took his gaze from the gruesome mess on the floor and stood. He looked back at Megatron. "Come," he said to him. "I'll show you the exit."

* * *

The next morning Bumblebee drove Prowl back to Sumdac Tower. Professor Sumdac was going to spend the morning teaching Prowl how to drive. While Sumdac did that Sari and Bumblebee would hang out together. That part hadn't been a piece of the original plan but had come much later. Bee had suggested it and Prowl had just shrugged. He didn't really care what Bumblebee did with his time. He didn't get why Bee was acting so weird about it.

He didn't bother asking. It wasn't his business. If he had asked Bumblebee wouldn't have told him anyway.

Professor Sumdac was waiting outside when the two Autobots pulled into the parking lot. Prowl climbed out and Bee went into standard mode before giving him a thumbs up and heading inside the tower. Prowl watched him go, wondering what the gesture meant then turned to the older man.

"Professor Sumdac," he said, walking toward him. "You didn't have to wait for me outside." _You could have stayed inside and did some more work on my motorcycle._

"I know, Prowl," Sumdac said. "But I needed some fresh air and knew you would be here early. I figured we'd start right away with your driving lesson."

"All right," Prowl consented.

"Come with me then." Sumdac led Prowl across the parking lot and toward a somewhat fancy looking car parked by a small patch of recently planted trees. The cyber ninja stared at it. "Is that cars yours?" he asked him.

He nodded. "Yes. It is my Ferrari. I had it imported from Italy with all the latest technology."

Prowl didn't know anything about Italy besides it was a country in Europe that made pizza and pasta. He wasn't aware that they made cars as well. "You're going to teach me to drive in your own car?" he asked, giving it a long, careful look. The vehicle looked like it cost a lot of money. "I don't know. It looks too nice and what happens if I hit something with it?" he didn't want the inventor losing his temper if he accidentally ran into a tree or something.

"Don't worry about it," Sumdac told him. "If you dent it I can have it fixed."

Prowl still didn't look too sure. For some reason he felt as if he was invading the cars space. _Stop it! Professor Sumdac's car isn't alive! It's not going to get mad at you if you drive it and hit it against something!_

_I know that, but it still makes me uneasy._

_Just get in. If you keep up that kind of thinking you'll never learn how to drive. _

He realized the voice was right. "All right," he said to Professor Sumdac.

"Okay, get in."

Both men climbed into the car. Prowl sat on the driver's side and Professor Sumdac sat in the front passenger seat.

"Okay, what do we do first?"

"First you strap in." Sumdac replied.

Prowl looked at him, his face full of confusion. "Strap in?"

"It's the leather strip hanging from the top of the seat on your left." Isaac replied, grabbing his own seat belt.

"Oh." Prowl grabbed the seat belt and copied the gesture Professor Sumdac had done. The belt locked into place with a click.

"Now you put the key in the ignition and turn."

Prowl held up the key he'd handed him and stared blankly at the steering wheel. "Uh...."

Professor Sumdac leaned forward and touched a circle attached to the stearing wheel that had a rectangular slot in it. "Right here," he told him.

The cyber ninja put the key in the ignition slot and turned it. The car started up with a growl. "What do I do now?" he asked him, grasping the wheel insecurely.

"First you take your foot off the brake pedal." Isaac replied, laughing.

"Oh." Prowl took his foot off the pedal then looked at him. "Well?"

"You have to back up."

"How do I do that?"

Professor Sumdac sighed, this was going to be harder than he thought. "You put the car in reverse."

"How do you do that?"

"Prowl!"

Prowl jumped. "I'm sorry," he told him. "I didn't have to learn to drive when I was a machine. It was already programed into me."

Professor Sumdac sighed. "Sorry," he said. He leaned over once more. "Here let me help you."

* * *

Bumblebee and Sari stepped out of the Tower just as Prowl backed up and...smashed the rear bumper into a plant. Sari winced.

"He's not doing very well," Bumblebee commented, watching Prowl pull away from the tree and crawl out of the parking lot. Everything went well until the front of the car scraped against the rear bumper of another car. "In fact: To imitate earth teens, his driving sucks."

Sari found she couldn't disagree. Prowl's driving did suck. "Well it's only his first time," she told the young Autobot. "He'll get better." Prowl smashed into another plant and she winced again. "It just might take awhile."

"That's obvious." Suddenly he grinned and looked over at Sari. "Wanna watch?"

She looked unsure. "I don't know, Bumblebee," she replied, looking back at the Ferrari. "It might not be a good idea."

"Oh come on," Bee urged. "It's not like we're going to hurt anyone. I just want to see him drive." he grinned again. "Come on. It'll be funny seeing Prowl unable to grasp something right away."

She finally nodded, giving him a slight smile. He was right. Prowl always seemed so perfect and could easily grasp things he learned. Seeing him mess up with something for once would be very amusing. "All right."

He reverted to vehicle mode and opened the driver's side down. "Hop in."

* * *

Prowl pulled tentatively onto the main road. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Professor Sumdac sigh with relief when he didn't brake too quickly or run into something or someone. Prowl got the feeling that he'd probably taken a few years off the inventor's life by then and they still had a long way to go.

"Okay, Prowl," Isaac said. "Try to keep a steady speed. Press gently on the gas and keep on eye on the speedomiter. The speed is forty miles an hour. Hit the gas until you reach that speed then stay steady."

Prowl didn't react for a moment then he slammed door hard on the gas, shooting forward at speeds way over forty miles an hour.

"What are you doing?!" Sumdac demanded, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head.

"You said hit the gas."

"Gently! Hit it gently!" Sumdac yelled, grabbing the door handle. He looked like he was about to yank the door open and bail out.

"I'm sorry." Prowl pulled back on the pedal, slowing down to a more conservative space. The car behind him had to brake quickly to avoid coliding with him. He heard a car horn blare that didn't help with his nerves.

For a moment Sumdac said nothing. He sat back in his seat, panting heavily.

"Are you all right, Professor?" Prowl asked, looking at the older man.

"I'm fine," Professor Sumdac gasped. "Just don't do that again. I don't think my heart can take it."

"Maybe this wasn't a good idea," Prowl said, gripping the steering wheel. "I don't think I'll be able to get it right."

"You'll get it right, you just have to keep trying."

Prowl wondered why Professor Sumdac was encouraging him after he'd nearly given the older man a heart attack. For a few minutes they drove in silence, Prowl able to keep a steady speed for awhile. He was starting to feel a little more at ease now. Then a yellow car cut in front of him and he jerked hard on the wheel. Professor Sumdac let out a startled yelp and turned toward him. "What did you do that for?"

"Whoever's driving that car cut me off without warning," he explained, looking at the man. "What did you expect me to do? Drive into him?"

"No," Professor Sumdac said. He looked at the car in front of them. "Hey, isn't that Bumblebee?"

* * *

Meanwhile inside the other car Bumblebee was cracking up. "Primus, did you see the look on Prowl's face when I cut him off?" he laughed. "I should have taken a holopic."

"Bumblebee," Sari said, frowning. "I don't think that was a good idea."

"Why?"

She folded her arms and leaned back in the seat. "You could have caused an accident."

"Ah, you're no fun." he pouted.

"Well do you want them to get into an accident?" she demanded. "What if your little prank had caused them to smash through the guard rail or create a fifty car pile up? They could have gotten killed."

"But they didn't," Bumblebee pointed out. "If they had been in any kind of danger I would have prevented injury."

"How do you know that?" she wanted to know. "For all you know you would have wound up being too slow and.."

"All right. All right," he cut her off. "I'm sorry. Sheesh. It was only a little joke."

"It wasn't funny."

* * *

Prowl pounded his hand against the steering wheel. "Bumblebee?!" he shouted. "I should have known! He could have killed us."

"I'm sure he didn't meant to," Professor Sumdac told him.

Prowl didn't believe that for a moment. Bumblebee had cut him off on purpose. He always had a sick sense of humor. _Well I'm not going to let him get away with it. I'm going to teach him a lesson._

Then, before he could weigh the consequences he slammed his foot down hard on the gas pedal.

* * *

Sari happened to look into the rear view mirror just then. She saw a Ferrari that looked suspiciously similar to her father's coming up fast. "Um... Bumblebee." she began.

She never got to finish her sentense. It was cut off when the car behind them slammed hard into Bumblebee's rear bumper.

"Whoa! What in Cybertron!?" Bee exclaimed, taken totally by surprise.

Sari twisted around in her seat. The other car was so close she could see through the windshield. She recognized the driver. "It's Prowl!" she exclaimed.

"Prowl?!" Bee asked. "What does he think he's doing?!"

"I," Sari began, turning around. "Believe he's getting back at you for cutting him off."

* * *

"Prowl! What in the name of all things sacred are you doing!?" Professor Sumdac yelled, his face full of fear, his eyes bugging out of his head.

"Nothing, really," he said, not looking at him. "Just a little pay back."

_Pay back!? _Isaac stared at him. The cyber ninja had a look on his face the inventor had never seen before. He didn't like it. It just didn't look right on him. An angry vengeful expression. "Prowl! Stop!"

But Prowl wasn't listening. He took his weight off the gas pedal and fell back a few feet. Then he reapplied the weight and once again smashed into the Autobots rear bumper. _This'll teach you to cut me off. _

He repeated the process two more times then pulled back and got back into his own lane. He pulled ahead and passed them, but not before giving Bumblebee a rude gesture he'd learned from angry motorists who hadn't like it when he'd cut in front of them when he was a robot.

* * *

Sari's eyes widened as Prowl shot past them. "Did Prowl just flip us the bird?" she asked.

* * *

Prowl pulled ahead of them and the vengeful expression changed to a satisfied smile. That should teach Bumblebee to cut him off.

The rest of his driving lesson went pretty well after that. Prowl had finally gotten the hang of it and was feeling so much better about it.

"Okay," Professor Sumdac said an hour later. After the incident with Bumblebee Prowl had done much better and seemed more relaxed. The older man felt better as well. "Let's get back to the Tower now. I've got some things to do."

Prowl nodded and took the exit ramp that would take them back to the Sumdac Tower. They were only four blocks away when a car that looked suspiciously like Bumblebee pulled up behind them. Prowl ignored it, figuring Bee had learned his lesson. _He wouldn't try anything, not after what happened. _

This thought was instantly dashed from his mind when Bumblebee slammed into the rear bumper of the car. Prowl, taken completely by surprise, yanked hard on the steering wheel and flew off the road and down a shallow ravine. That wouldn't have been so bad if there didn't happen to be a tree looming before them.

"Brake!" Professor Sumdac screamed, freaking out. He grasped both sides of his seat and leaned back into the leather. "BRAKE!"

Prowl, thinking quickly, slammed down hard on what he thought was the brake pedal. Unfortunately it had been the gas and the car sped up. The next instant the front end of the car was sporting a new hood ornament. The tree. Luckily the air bags had deployed and neither Professor Sumdac or Prowl were hurt.

For a few moments both sat in their seats breathing heavily. Prowl's glasses had gotten cockeyed and hung on an angle on his face. He stared straight ahead, his blue eyes wide as he stared at the tree. _What?_

He looked over at Professor Sumdac. "Are you all right, Professor?" he asked him.

The older man nodded. "I'm fine."

That was a relief but the cyber ninja didn't want to be in the car anymore. He unbuckled the seat belt then reached for the door handle.

They opened their doors and stepped outside the access the damage. It looked much worse from the front than it did from inside the car.

"My car!" Professor Sumdac yelled, grabbing both sides of his head and staring at the damage in horror. "My two million dollar Ferarri!"

"At least we're okay," Prowl said, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Isaac nodded. He was glad of that too but he was still upset about his car. Prowl looked back toward the road. Bumblebee or the car that had looked like Bumblebee's was gone.

_A/N_

_The part with Megatron and Barricade made me feel as if I was writing a completely different story. But for now I'm going to take a break from Megatron's subplot and focus more on the main one. Megatron is going to end up part of the bigger story anyway. I'm not sure about Barricade, though... I might just make Megatron kill him or have him take Megatron to Earth. As for Blitzwing and Lugnut and the others I don't have any ideas for them... Starscream on the other hand..._

_FYI I don't know how to drive so that part was a little complicated. But a lot of fun to write. I just conjured up the picture of my sister during her driving lessons. Too bad I can't draw that scene. I got a really funny picture of a freaked out Sumdac in my head. _


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"You know that wasn't really a good idea," Sari said to Prowl a few hours later. She and the cyber ninja were sitting in the Sumdac's living room. They were eating apple slices while Professor Sumdac lay on his bed in his room, recovering from the earlier incident.

When he and Prowl had returned from their accident the professor said he had to lie down and went to his room. That had been two hours ago. In that time Sari had come home and explained what had happened after Prowl smashed into Bumblebee's bumper. The younger Autobot had decided to pay Prowl back. It wound up being a really bad idea.

"It wasn't my fault," Prowl protested. "Bumblebee shouldn't have done what he did either."

"He wasn't trying to hurt you guys," she told him, defensively. "It was just a joke."

"Some joke," Prowl snapped, picking up another apple slice. "Running somebody off the road is not a laughing matter. He could have gotten us killed!"

"Well you shouldn't have given him the finger." Sari shot back. She changed position, draping her one leg on top of the other. "Besides, you didn't have to drive into that tree."

"It was an accident!" he snapped. "I got the brakes messed up. It happens to a lot of people."

She couldn't argue with that. Instead she looked down at the plate of apples resting on the coffee table. "At least Dad's not blaming you."

"That's good but I don't think he'll take me driving anymore." the cyber ninja said, sighing. "Not after what happened to his car. I know it wasn't my fault but I still feel responsible." he looked at Sari. "Even though it never would have happened if Bumblebee hadn't cut me off."

"It was a joke," she repeated herself. "I already lectured him about it. His defense was if he had known you had road rage, he never would have done it." she snickered mockingly. "Some defense."

Prowl didn't reply. He knew what road rage was. He'd dealt with people with it numerous times. He always found people with that problem annoying. The fact that he himself might have it made him feel uneasy. If he was going to drive, he would have to learn to control it. "Does he intend to apologize to Professor Sumdac?" he asked finally. "_He's_ the one who should be saying he's sorry to after all. It was his fault after all. I don't care if he doesn't tell me he's sorry."

"I don't know what he's going to do," she admitted, shaking her head. "I told him he should as well. He said he would but he'll probably forget." she shrugged. "Sorry."

"For what?" he wanted to know, looking confused. "_You_ didn't do anything."

"I feel partly responsible," she told him, looking away. "I agreed to go with him."

_Oh. _He frowned then asked. "Why were you following us anyway?'

"Bumblebee wanted to see you mess up," she replied a little sheepishly. "He thought it would be funny to watch you drive around. He said it would be amusing to see you unable to grasp something right away. He always thought you were perfect because you're so good at stuff. I guess the idea of you being flawed made him feel better or something."

Prowl folded his arms and made a face, looking over the top of his glasses with that Look. "I hope he's happy," he said sarcastically. "Not only for seeing my own imperfections but for getting the childish amusement he asked for."

"Come on, Prowl," Sari said. "Give him a break. He felt bad enough about it when we got back. He's the one who called the rescue unites and stuff after all because he was worried that you both might be hurt."

"It doesn't make a difference," Prowl told her, getting up and walking toward the windows. "It was still an immature thing to do." he shook his head. "But what else do I expect from him? That's just how he is." _He still should have known better._

Sari knew he was right. She got off the sofa and stood beside at him the window. "I guess Dad's not going to make you your vehicle then."

Prowl shook his head. "I don't know and right now I don't really care," he told her. "It's not very important right now. " he sighed. She saw his fists clench at his sides. "Honestly it wasn't just Bumblebee's fault. I shouldn't have done what I did either. I don't usually lose my temper like that. I think I scared your father."

She said nothing. She hadn't been in the car when he'd lost his temper but she had seen his expression through the windshield. She knew she'd never seen him look like that before. It was unsettling. He was usually so composed and, if he did get mad, it was never that bad. _But remember, he was a robot then. His emotions weren't like they are now. This is still new to him so he doesn't have much control of how he acts. But he will. Don't worry about it. He'll get better at it._

_But what if he doesn't? What if things just get worse?_

"Prowl?"

He looked at her. "It's nothing to worry about," she told him. "You're still learning to deal with these new emotions. I'm sure you'll be able to have better control in the future."

He didn't look like he believed her. "How can you say that?" he asked her. "You don't know how it feels."

"I know," she admitted. "But that's only because I've always been the way I am. This is still new to you. You're getting better at it, you know."

"I don't know." he looked away. "I don't think I am. Ever since this started I've found I have fears I didn't realize. I also have a temper I can't control very well, as you've seen and I get frustrated easily." he looked down at his hand, rubbing his fingers against one another. He was still getting used to how they felt as well. "I always wondered what it would be like to be organic like you and now that I've got my wish..." his voice trailed off. _I'm not quite sure I like it after all._

She put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey," she said when he turned his head to look at her. "Don't worry about it. It'll be okay. We all know you wanted to be this way you've said it quite a few times in the past. Now that you are and you're dealing with your emotions and other things humans have to deal with, you can stop wondering. Also stop worrying. The more you do something the better you get at it. You're still new as I've said. Just give it some time. You'll have more control, I promise."

He looked away. "I guess." but he still didn't sound convinced.

"I have an idea," she said after a moment's silence.

"What?"

"Why don't we go for a walk?" she asked him.

He make a face. "A walk?"

"Yeah," she said, smiling. "I can show you around the city and you can view it with new eyes." she grasped his right hand in both of hers. "It'll make things easier."

He hesitated.

She wasn't going to let him say no that easily. "Come on," she said, tugging on his hand and walking backward. "Just you and me, two techno organics out for a night on the town." she smiled again, closing her eyes this time. "You'll feel better, I promise."

Finally he relented, letting her drag him out of the room and toward the elevators. He'd have to trust her. She was after all, more experienced than himself in this matter. Who knew? She could be right about it. It couldn't hurt.

* * *

Bumblebee had gone back to the plant, knowing it was a bad idea to stay around after what had happened. He figured Professor Sumdac and Prowl wouldn't be happy to see him for awhile so he'd left. He didn't even both to wonder how Prowl would get back to the plant without him to take him but he figured the cyber ninja could always contact Optimus or one of the others and they could take him back.

Besides there was a new Xbox game he'd bought the other day that was calling his name.

When Prowl and Sari arrived on the second floor and noticed his absence Prowl felt he knew what the cause was and didn't bother worrying about it. Even if Bumblebee didn't come back for him he could always ask one of the others or maybe Sari could take him, if she owned her own car which he doubted. She only owned a jetpack/motor scooter which she used more than any vehicle now. But that was still at the plant, lock chained to the telephone pole.

Right now that wasn't all that important. "Walk" meant to use your own two legs to get around and that's what they were going to do. Sari kept a tight hold on his arm as they headed out of the Tower. He wasn't sure if she was doing that to keep him from bolting or what. He wasn't planning on running away. His curiosity got the better of him. He'd wondered what humanity was like and what they did and he was about to get his wish. As a robot he wasn't able to enter all the establishments humans owned or worked in so most of his observations were at the park. Now that he could, it would be very educational.

They crossed the street and walked toward the more busy part of the city. The place where stores lined both sides of the street and people walked to and fro like busy ants. Prowl watched all the people going in and out of the stores, wondering what they were doing and where they were going.

"Is this place always so busy?" he asked Sari after a few minutes.

The girl looked over at him. "Why are you asking me that?" she wanted to know. "You should know that."

He shook his head. "Not really," he told her. "I did my best to avoid the city areas. I didn't want to risk stepping on anyone."

"Oh," she shrugged. "Well it is busy like this most of the times, except on holidays."

"Oh." he turned his attention back to the people. "But why do they always have to be buying things? Don't they have enough stuff at their houses?"

"Why are you asking me that?"

"Because you might know," he told her. "I always wondered about that but, up until now, I didn't bother asking."

Sari did not answer. Explaining that would just lead to more questions. For a moment the mental image of her explaining it to him popped into her mind. It was sixty years later and they were both old biddies. Even that old he was still asking her questions.... She shook her head, scattering the images out of her mind.

"Uh...well," she said, trying to explain it the easiest way possible so the image in her mind didn't happen. "People need to go to the store. If they run out of food they have to go to the store to get some more or they might have a child that outgrew his clothing and shoes and stuff so they have to buy him new things. It's not that they _want_ to shop every day, though some people like doing that, it's because they _have_ to."

For a moment he didn't say anything then understanding seemed to dawn on his face. He nodded slowly. "Oh." was the only thing he said.

She sighed, relieved that he hadn't asked anything else about it.

They continued down the sidewalk. For a few minutes neither said anything. Sari watched Prowl watch all those people walking around and wondered what was going through his mind. His young, hairless face was impassive, giving her no clues on his thoughts.

Prowl wasn't sure what to think. While Sari's explanation told him something there were a few exceptions to it. Mostly teenage girls who went into jewelry stores and the tattoo and body piercing parlors. How did shiny rocks and holes in the body and body art enter the category of "have to"? He remembered all the paint the girl Margo had on her face. It made her look like a circus clown. Was that _really_ needed?

Before he could say anything to Sari about it she jerked hard on his arm and made him stop. He looked down at her, curiously. She looked up at him. "Hey, Prowl, ever try a bagel?" she asked.

"A bagel?" he blinked. "What's a bagel?"

That told her all she needed to know. She jerked on his arm, leading him into one of the buildings. It looked like a deli or a coffee shop. She grinned at him. "You'll see." she said mysteriously.

He wasn't sure he wanted to. He got the impression that it was some kind of food. But what kind he did not know. He just hoped it wasn't junk, which he had the sneakingest suspicion it was. But he couldn't really refuse one if she bought it for him, that would be rude. Even if it tasted like sand paper.

Prowl felt the sensation of cold air wash over him when they entered the shop. His body let out an involuntary shiver. It was colder in here than it had been outside. It was even colder than it had been in the Sumdac Tower. When he was a machine cold hadn't mattered, but now..... _Somebody has the air conditioning set to high, _he thought, rubbing his arms for warmth.

Sari noticed his discomfort but she also noticed some people staring at them. She whacked his arms gently. When he looked at her she mouthed. "Cut it out."

He made a face. "I'm cold," he informed her.

"Well don't make it so obvious," she shot back, putting her hands on her hips. "I'm cold too but I'm not big making a show of it." she grabbed his sleeve and drug him toward the counter. "If you're cold order a coffee or something and you'll feel better."

"I can't order anything," he told her, yanking his arm out of her grip. This habit of hers with dragging him around was getting on his nerves. "I don't have any money."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine, I'll pay for it."

He frowned at her but said nothing. Instead he looked at the menu suspended above the counter. The place sold more than bagels and coffee but everything had weird names and he had no idea what any of it was. "What's a mocha?" he asked, tapping her on the shoulder.

"A kind of coffee," she replied, not looking at him.

"Oh, I thought it was something else."

She looked over her shoulder and opened her mouth to ask what that would but be was cut off by a commotion from the front of the line.

"Listen, flamer, if I've been waiting here for the past ten minutes!" a familiar voice shouted. "If I don't get my order soon I'm gonna own every single one of you hacks!"

Prowl and Sari looked at each other. "Flamer?" Prowl said.

Sari frowned. She was familiar with that annoying leet speak. "I know of only one person who talks like that," Sari responded.

"I'm sorry, sir," the lady at the counter said patiently. "But we're a bit behind right now. Please be patient."

"I've been patient!" he shouted, slamming his fist down on the counter. "How long does it take to nuke a bagel?!"

"I'm sorry," the lady said, her voice becoming strained.

Prowl frowned. "He's harassing that poor woman." _I'm not going to let him keep it up. _He started forward.

Sari grabbed his arm to stop him. "Don't," she hissed. But he wasn't listening. He yanked his arm out of her grip and kept on his course.

The angry patron slammed his fists down hard on the counter again and leaned toward her. "Listen, you no good flamer," he seethed. "I've waited long enough! Now you either get me my bagel now or I'm gonna-"

A hand slapped onto his shoulder. "She said you have to be patient," a voice spoke up behind him.

The costumer froze for a moment then turned to look at the speaker. Prowl stood behind him, his expression serious. "Whose this pretty boy?" he asked.

Prowl glared at him, recognizing the smart aleck as Henry Masterson, the crazy whack job that had created the Headmaster Units. "I don't think that really concerns you, Mr. Masterson," he told him. "The lady told you to wait and if you're going to be causing trouble I would advice you either leave or I'm afraid I'm going to be forced to stop you."

Masterson stared at him a moment then burst out laughing. "How do you expect to do that?" he asked him. "You don't look like you could beat a level one grunt."

Prowl said nothing but his expression darkened, his eyelids lowering halfway. "I will not repeat myself."

Henry smacked at the hand on his shoulder. "I would advice keeping your hands to yourself, punk," he said. He turned away from him. "Unless you're looking for trouble." he glared at the lady. "Give me my bagel!"

Now Prowl's teeth were bared. Sari stared at him a moment and tried to grab his arm again, saying. "Forget it, Prowl. He's not worth it."

But the cyber ninja ignored her. He wasn't going to let this little snot keep harassing people. He didn't even know how the man was out of jail. It didn't matter. He stepped forward and grabbed the man by the shoulders, yanking him away from the counter and sending him sprawling.

Henry stared up at him with big eyes. "Hey, what the heck did you do that for?" he demanded.

Prowl stood over him, his hands on his hips and the top part of his face hidden in shadow. His blue eyes glowed strangely through that shadow, as if they weren't human. "I told you I would stop you if you kept on harassing her!"

"You're crazy!" Masterson shouted.

Prowl leaned over, his eyes glowing like two shards of blue eyes. "Am I?" he asked. "I'm just making sure nobody gets hurt. Now unless, you _want_ to get hurt, you'll apologize to her this instant!"

Henry stared at him a moment. By the other man's expression he could tell he was serious. He also got the feeling he'd be in for a brusing if he didn't do what he said. He looked at the woman behind the counter. "I'm sorry!" he told her. "Cancel my order!"

Prowl's expression changed, reverting back to a normal impassive stare. He straightened up as Masterson scrambled to his feet. The young man glared at him. "This isn't over," he snapped before turning and stalking out of the building. "You'll pay for humiliating me like that, noob!"

Prowl watched him go then looked back at Sari. She just stared at him. He noticed the other costumers were also staring. _Oops. _He'd messed up. "Sorry." he said, nervously. "I didn't-"

The lady behind the counter came to his rescue. "That's all right," she told him. "That man's been causing trouble in here for weeks. It was only a matter of time before somebody taught him a lesson."

Her explanation made him feel better. "All the same, I apologize," he told her. "It won't happen again."

"Don't worry about it, sir."

Prowl got back in line beside Sari. "You still shouldn't have done that," she said in a low voice.

"I'm sorry," he said to her. "I don't know what I was thinking."

"It's all right," she said, putting a hand on his arm. "At least something good came out of it."

He gave her a small smile but didn't feel any better. Once again he'd let his temper get the best of him. _I'm going to have to do something to control it, _he thought. _I can't keep letting it control me when things happen. _He sighed. _But not right now. _

* * *

After Prowl and Sari ordered their food they sat in a booth by the front window. Sari sat on one side of the table while Prowl sat on the other. Sari dug right into her blueberry bagel with cream cheese with gusto, but Prowl just stared out the window, his food untouched.

She finally noticed he wasn't eating. "What's wrong?" she asked him.

"Nothing," he said. "I'm just thinking about something."

"What?"

He shook his head. "It's not important."

She frowned. "Whenever you say that it winds up being important," she told him. "Now what is it?"

"Nothing, I was just wondering about something," he repeated. When she opened her mouth to question him further he put up his hand to stop her. "Never mind, Sari. I don't feel like discussing it with you."

She looked annoyed and he could tell she wanted to press the matter. For a few seconds it seemed like she would but then she shrugged and said. "Fine. Whatever." and went back to her bagel.

Prowl looked down at his own bagel, studying it. It was similar in shape to the junk food humans called donuts but had a different texture. Even with that in mind he wasn't sure he wanted to try it. It didn't look very healthy, even covered in cream cheese which Sari told him was something health nuts used it made him very suspicious. He poked it with his finger as if it was some kind of alien creature.

That's when he noticed Sari watching him and lifted his head. "It's not going to bite you," she told him, looking like she was trying not to laugh.

"I know that," he said, irritably. "Are you sure this thing is healthy? You're not trying to trick me into eating junk are you?"

"Prowl," Sari said with strained patience. "Bagels aren't donuts. They're not baked in fat like donuts. They're like bread, only they have a different shape and a slightly different taste. They're perfectly fine for a health nut like you. Stop worrying about it."

He gave the bagel another unsure look then picked it up. "If you say so."

He bit into it and chewed it for a moment. It tasted okay, not like that chocolate bar had but he wasn't sure if he liked it or not. After a moment he swallowed and set it down.

"How was it?" Sari asked.

He shrugged. "It's fine," he said. "I'm not sure I like it though."

She sighed. "You're picky, you know that?"

"Sorry."

* * *

Half an hour later they finished their bagels and left. By then it was getting late. "Let's head back to the Tower now," Sari said, grabbing his arm to get his attention. "Dad doesn't want me out after dark unless I'm with one of you."

"Well you are with one of us," he said, following her down the sidewalk. "You're with me."

"I know," she said. "But now that you're..."

He stared at her face. "What?"

"Now that you are the way you are it just feels different," she told him looking away. _Like I'm with a real boy. _

"How different?"

"Awkward."

"Oh. Well you and Professor Sumdac don't need to worry," he stated. "Even though I look like this now I'll make sure nothing happens to you."

She smiled. 'Thanks. That makes me feel much better."

_Is she being sarcastic? _He didn't ask. They walked in silence for a few minutes. Suddenly she grabbed his arm. He looked down at her. "Sari?" be began.

She put a finger to his lips, giving him a severe look. "Shhh!" she hissed. "Don't look now but I think we're being followed."

_A/N_

_I seemed to be avoiding an important issue in this story, character development. So I figured I'd get some more of that done in this chapter. Prowl and Sari haven't really had time to themselves. So they're getting some. Unfortunately I can't resist adding a little trouble for spice. :D Hehehehe.. It's just way too fun. Besides; I figured I'd have some fun with Masterson. He deserved what he got but I'm not finished with him. If Masterson sounds funny it's because I'm not very good at l33t speak. _


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Followed? Prowl didn't look behind himself but he did wonder who would want to follow them and why. It didn't make any sense to him. It wasn't like they had anything valuable to steal. "Why would somebody be following us?" he asked her.

The girl shrugged. "I don't know," she replied, quickening her pace. It was obvious she didn't want a confrontation with whoever it was. "but I don't want to deal with it either. The last thing we need is for some punks to mug us."

"That won't happen," he replied, clenching a fist. He felt a strange energy course through his palm. "I won't_ let _it happen."

She looked up at him. "Prowl, they're not worth it," she said, putting a hand on his arm to calm him down. "Just pretend they're not there. We're almost at the Tower anyway. It doesn't matter."

But Prowl didn't agree. It _did _matter. With how things had gone that day he wasn't ready to deal with another problem. He knew if he ignored it it wouldn't go away. Life wasn't that easy. But something kept him from doing anything. The memory of the two incidents when he'd let his temper get the best of him. He couldn't let that happen again, not with Sari around to witness it.

But the fact that somebody was following them still annoyed him. The further they walked the greater the temptation to deal with the person or at least confront them grew. He chanced a quick glance over his shoulder. He saw a shadowy figure tailing them but couldn't make it out. They had stepped onto a block that didn't have any street lights. It impaired his vision making it impossible to make an identification. He looked ahead, feeling frustrated. If he were still a robot he wouldn't have had anything to worry about it because when he'd been a full machine he was able to see in the dark, even if it had been pitch black.

Yet another disadvantage that came with being organic. _I'll get used to it. _

Suddenly Sari grabbed onto his arm and jerked him into an alley that they were walking by. "Sari, what-" he began.

She slapped a hand over his mouth. "Shh!" she hissed leaning forward with a finger to her lips.

He fell silent and both peeked out of the alley. The shadowy figure was still coming but now he seemed to be moving faster. "Darn," Sari grumbled and yanked him back into the alley. She turned and ran down to the other end of the alley.

"What's going on?" he asked as they ran.

"I think I know who that is now," she told him, looking over her shoulder. "I don't feel like taking care of him right now. I've already gotten enough crap from him."

"Who?"

But Sari wasn't explaining. Prowl looked over his shoulder and saw the figure had reached the alley and was coming after them. He ground his teeth together. Just what he didn't need.

"Sari, I thought we were going back to the tower," he said.

"We are," she replied, not looking at him. "We're just taking a different route."

By then they'd exited the alley. She yanked on his arm and led him down the sidewalk. Prowl once again looked over his shoulder but he saw nobody. The girl didn't stop though. She yanked him around a few more blocks then finally they came to a stop. She leaned against the wall of a bakery and panted heavily. "I think we lost them," she said, her body bent over and her hands resting on her knees.

"Mind telling me what this is about?" Prowl demanded, folding his arms and leaning against the wall. "This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with what I did in the cafe would it?"

"Maybe," she said, looking up at him. "and if it is, this is your fault and not mine. I _told _you not to get involved."

"Sorry," he said, annoyed. "I was only trying to be helpful. Masterson should have acted civil."

"Forget it," she said, not wanting to discuss it. "I don't think this was your fault anyway. He's been giving us trouble since before you even died. It was only a matter of time before he did something else."

"Who?"

She shook her head. "Forget it," she said. "It's not important. I shouldn't have said anything." she looked back the way they came. "He's gone now anyway so let's just get back to the Tower before Dad starts to worry." She turned around and started walking down the sidewalk.

He reluctantly followed, glancing over his shoulder a few times to make sure whoever it had been was really gone.

They hadn't gone much further when a large figure jumped out of the shadows and hit him so hard his glasses flew off his face and he crashed onto the sidewalk.

* * *

Megatron followed Barricade through the almost deserted streets of Cybertron. The Decepticon wore stasis cuffs. It had been Barricades idea. When the Autobot had made the suggestion, Megatron had grabbed him by the throat and demanded to know what he was up to. Barricade explained that if he wore them nobody would pay any attention because they would think that the Autobot officer was transferring him and nothing more. The Decepticon saw the wisdom in that and grudgingly agreed to it but not before telling him that if he was lying he would regret it in more ways than one. He assured him he wasn't. What made things easier was at this time of night hardly anyone was out and that helped them both avoid any kind of intervention.

They were actually going to Barricade's apartment. The Autobot assured him it would be safe there. Megatron would only stay until he was able to get in contact with the other Decepticons. Dragstrip left no way of letting Megatron contact him. Maybe he figured nothing would come of the escape attempt and didn't bother.

Well it didn't matter. Megatron still had other Decepticons he could contact. He still had the access codes for Team Charr's frequency. He could always contact them. But first he needed access to the Network. To do that he had to use a console. Barricade had one at his apartment and told him he could use it if he wanted. He did.

Once the two were safely in the Autobot's apartment Barricade removed the cuffs. "You should be safe in here," he told him. "at least for awhile. I don't know if anyone saw us leave who would care, but if they had, I'm a wanted bot. I don't want you here if they come after me."

"You don't have to worry about me, Autobot," Megatron said, smirking as he rubbed his wrists. "If they _do_come after you while I am here I can assure you that nothing will come out of it. Now that I am in perfect condition and out of that filthy stockade, things will go my way." He met the shorter robots gaze. "I should advice you that if it comes down to it I will most likely use whatever is at my disposal for a shield even yourself."

Barricade met his red optics without flinching. "I wouldn't expect anything else from you," he said, his tone giving off no hint that he cared in the least what happened. "But." he stepped closer to the Decepticon, his arms folded across his chest. "If you know what is good for you, you would be wise not to try it."

Megatron grinned, not the least bit intimidated. "Brave words," he told him. "They could prove to be your undoing." Suddenly Barricade was being pinned against the wall by the throat which was clenched in the Decepticons dark gray hand. "But, I suggest not crossing me. Killing you wouldn't bother me in the least but I would rather not. I could use somebody like you and if I killed you I would just be depriving myself of an Allie."

Barricade smirked at him. "Then don't do it."

Megatron growled and threw Barricade across the room. The Autobot slammed into the wall and crashed onto the floor. "Next time," he said, walking around the island to tower over him."Don't bait me."

Barricade said nothing. When Megatron knelt down to look at his face he found out why. The other robots optics were darkened. He was out cold.

All well. Megatron turned from him and stepped toward the computer console. He pulled out the chair and sat in it before he booted up the tower and accessed the Network.

* * *

Prowl didn't stay down for long. He sprung to his feet, ready to take on the punk who had hit him. Unfortunately his glasses weren't on his face and he couldn't see very well. Everything around him looked like shapeless blobs. He heard Sari yelling and another fist slammed into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

He fell to the pavement, his arms wrapped around his stomach. Primus did that hurt! He ground his teeth in pain.

"I told you you haven't seen the last of me, flamer," said a voice above him.

Prowl looked up. He saw a blurry image standing next to a bulky thing. That bulky blurr had a hold of Sari who was struggling to break free. "Let me go, you freak of nature!" she shouted, flailing her arms and legs about.

"Speak for yourself!" the thing shot back. The voice sounded familiar.

"Who are you?" Prowl demanded, squinting. That didn't help. _Why did I have to get bad eye sight?!_

The bulky guy laughed. "I don't think he knows who we are without his peepers."

"So much the better," the other one said, cracking his knuckles.

Prowl cast his eyes on the sidewalk. He saw his glasses lying a few feet away. He reached out and grabbed them. Unfortunately a foot smashed down on his wrist. Pain shot up his arm and he forced himself not to cry out. He wasn't going to give these punks the satisfaction. He lifted his gaze and glared at the owner of the foot. Now that he was closer he recognized this character.

"Colossus," he growled.

The bulky steriod freak looked surprised. "How do you know my name?" he demanded.

Prowl didn't answer him. Instead he slammed his fist into the man's ankle. Colossus let out a shriek of pain and let Sari go so he could grab his it. She landed on her feet, turned around, and kicked him hard in the face. Prowl grabbed up his glasses and stood up just as the other blurred image, now recognized as Henry Masterson, came at him with fists flying.

He growled, showing off his teeth and slammed his fist into the man's face. Henry yelped in pain and fell back a few steps. He wiped his nose and saw blood on his hand. "You'll pay for that, you stupid pretty boy!" he roared coming at him again. "Prepare to be owned!"

Prowl's face filled with disgust. "I don't think so," he snapped, clenching both fists and rushing at the other man. "You should have minded your own business, Masterson"

His fist hit Henry's face so hard he heard something crunch under it. The other man screamed in pain and hit the pavement. "You broke my nose, you lunatic!"

Prowl didn't even care. He loomed over him then reached down and grabbed the man by the collar of his shirt, lifting him up, and slamming him hard against the wall. "How do you like getting what you give?" he snapped. ""Did you actually think I would let you get away with that?"

Henry's eyes were wild with fear. He had to get away from this psychopath. He reached up and slapped at Prowl's hands. "Get your hands off of me, you crazy freak!" he shouted.

Prowl glared at him then threw him over his shoulder. The man crashed onto the ground, yelling in pain when he landed on his shoulder. The cyber ninja jerked around and kicked him hard in the side. "That's for making me angry!" he snapped. He kicked him again. "and this is for coming back!" he kept on kicking. "and this is for all the crap you've put me and my friends through!"

By then Sari had taken out Collossus who he reverted to his puny form. She held the little man by the back collar of his clothing and smiled to herself. "And that is how it's done," she said and looked over at Prowl. "Hey, Prowl-"

The words died in her throat. Prowl had his back to her and was kicking the crap out of Masterson. "Prowl?" she realized what he was doing. "Prowl, stop!"

Prowl didn't seem to hear her. He kicked the man again. She dropped the shrimp and ran over to her friend. If he kept this up he'd kill Masterson. She might not like the idiot but she didn't want him dead. If he died Prowl would be sent to jail.

The cyber ninja was still kicking the man, each blow giving him a sick sense of satisfaction. "If you ever cross me again, so help me I'll-"

Suddenly he was grabbed from behind and pulled back. "Prowl! I said stop!" he looked down and saw Sari holding onto his waist. The expression on his face changed from anger to confusion."Sari?"

"Let him alone," she commanded, looking up at him. "He's had enough!"

The cyber ninja looked down at at Henry who winced then struggled to his feet. He backed away from him, holding his side, his expression full of horror. He turned away and dashed down the street. Collossus went after him, not looking back once.

When they were gone Sari looked up at Prowl. "What is wrong with you?" she demanded, staring him right in the eyes. "You could have killed him!"

Prowl said nothing, realization dawning on him. He'd lost his temper again. This time it had almost caused fatal consequences. He looked the way the two had gone. _Oh my spark, what did I almost do? _"I'm sorry," he said in a voice that sounded like a mix between horror and disbelief. "I didn't mean to hit him so hard and so many times." he looked down at the ground. "I just..." his voice trailed off.

Sari's face softened when she saw his expression. It told her more than words could. He hadn't meant it and he was sorry. She also saw fear on his face as well. She felt the same way. What if this happened again? _I hope not. _She looked away from him and back the way Henry and his buddy had gone. "I don't think he'll bother us anymore," she said changing the subject. "At least I hope not."

"I don't think he will," Prowl told her. "Not after..."

"That's one good thing for you," she said, looking back at him. "If he did you'd just be causing trouble for you and the others. He still has access to Headmaster units." _You should have thought of that before. If he ever figures it out you'll all be in danger. _

Prowl hadn't thought of that. If Masterson had figured out who Prowl was he would create more trouble. His temper could have caused yet more problems. _I'm such an idiot. Why did I let myself do such a thing in the first place? What is wrong with me?_

"Come on," she said, tugging on his sleeve to get his attention. "Let's get back to the Tower before Dad starts to worry."

Prowl allowed her to lead him down the sidewalk, his thoughts elsewhere. _As soon as I get back to the plant I'm going to have to do something about this temper. I can't let it keep on controling me. _He took a deep breath and sighed it out. _I think I know exactly how to do it. _

* * *

Optimus wound up being the one who picked up Prowl after he and Sari returned to the tower. The cyber ninja could tell that Prime wasn't too happy about it but neither said anything about it. Prowl didn't feel like talking anyway. He was still feeling bad about that days incidents which were partly to mostly his fault. If Optimus had wanted to talk he would have found his friend to be testy as well as evasive. He would have learned nothing anyway.

But he didn't. He didn't even ask how his driving lesson had gone. Prowl had the sneakingest suspicion that Bumblebee might have said something to him about it. All well. It didn't matter.

When they got back to the plant Prowl climbed out of Optimus cab and went inside without a word. Optimus followed but also stayed silent. The cyber ninja went immediately to his own room and shut the door behind himself. He looked up at the tree. The branches he usually did his meditations on were so high up and he didn't want to climb it anymore. Not after what happened yesterday. Instead he walked over to the trunk and sat down between the roots.

Folding his legs into the lotus position he took a deep breath and sighed it out. He rested the back of his knees and closed his eyes. He would get a better hold on his emotions. The only way he knew how.

* * *

"What did you do to Prowl?"

Bumblebee looked up from the TV screen. Optimus stood behind him with his arms folded. "What do you mean?" the yellow Autobot wanted to know.

"Don't play that game with me, Bumblebee, I'm not in the mood for it," Optimus snapped. "He's been acting funny. He wasn't acting weird earlier and you're the one who took him to the Tower for his driving lesson. Now, what did you do?"

"Nothing," Bumblebee said, turning his attention back to the screen. He sounded annoyed that Optimus was even asking him such a question. _How dare you blame me! _"It's not my fault he's got a temper like a cosmic rust covered Dinobot."

Optimus stepped toward the TV and pulled out the cords attaching the system to the it. The screen went black. "Hey!" the yellow Autobot exclaimed, jumping up. "What did you do that for?"

"Bumblebee," Optimus said, standing in front of the TV so he had Bee's full attention. "Did it ever accure to you that now that Prowl is human, that testing his patience is a bad idea?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Then let me explain," the older robot said. "Sari told me what you did earlier. She also told me the outcome."

Bee looked away. "She's a real snitch."

"Bumblebee!" the yellow bot looked back at him. "You might have thought that what you did was funny and harmless but it seemed to slip your mind that organics emotions are not as controlled as our own. Prowl was a machine for millions of years so he never realized just how unpredictable they are. Now that he's like Sari he has to deal with them more than before. "

"So?"

"_So_?!" the older robot frowned down at him. "Let me explain in words you understand," Prime said slowly as if he was talking to a sparkling. "He's not used to it. He' can't control them like he used to. Testing his patience is an extremely bad idea. If you keep it up you might cause him to do something he'll regret in the future."

Bumblebee stood up. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Humans call it hormones," Optimus replied. "Prowl's current form looks similar to Sari's which is a teenager state. Prowl looks slightly older than her but since he only became human recently, his hormones are like that of a person going through what they call puberty. From what I've learned; that time of a human's existence makes their emotions go crazy and makes them hard to control. He is highly unstable right now."

Bumblebee frowned. "So you're saying I'm playing with fire?"

"Exactly. Do you really want to drive Prowl into some kind of emotional rampage? Do you want him to go _crazy_?"

Bumblebee looked away. "No."

"Then try to keep you jokes to yourself," the older robot advised. "When his emotions are finally back to normal _then_ you can do what you want, though I would advice against it."

"How long should that take?"

Optimus shook his head. "I don't know," he replied. "If I could take an educated guess... about seven years."

"What?!"

Optimus smirked. "That's only a guess, Bumblebee. If I know Prowl it should take much less time." he started out of the room. "Just try to control yourself when you're around him. It could make things easier for all of us."

"One more thing," he added, looking back at him. "I would suggest apologizing to him as soon as possible."

* * *

Sari peeked into her father's room to check on him. She found the bed empty. _He must be up, _she figured, closing the door.

She headed down the hall to her own room but stopped when she heard what sounded like somebody typing on a keyboard. She followed the sound and poked her head into Professor Sumdac's office. He was sitting at the computer, his left hand sketching something on the console tablet.

"Dad?" she said loud enough to get his attention. He lifted his head and met her eyes. "Sari, you're back," he said, looking surprised.

"Yeah, I just came in about ten minutes ago," she said, stepping into the room. She walked toward his desk. "What are you doing?"

"Working," he replied. She stood beside him and stared at the image on the screen. "I wanted to finish this as soon as possible."

Sari studied the design, a futuristic motorcycle design. "So you're still going to make Prowl that motorcycle," she said.

"Yes," he answered, looking at her. "Why shouldn't I?'

"Well I didn't think you'd want to, not after what happened with your car..." her voice trailed off.

"That's another reason why I wanted to get this finished," he said. "So I don't have to worry about anything like that happening again. If he wants to crash something it should belong to him." He shook his head. "I hope he remembers to get insurance."

She giggled. "You don't want to risk him ruining another one of your cars?" she asked. "But there's a problem. He still has hours to go before he can take the driver's test. Are you going to help him finish up those hours?"

Professor Sumdac sighed. "I want to but I'm afraid to get into another car with him after what he did-"

"That was Bumblebee's fault," she cut him off, severely. "Bee shouldn't have been harassing him. If he'd left him alone this never would have happened."

Professor Sumdac looked at her. "So it _was _Bumblebee," he said.

"Yes," she said insistently. She was determined not to have Prowl get all the blame for what happened. "He wanted to see Prowl mess up and decided to play a joke on him." she shook her head and sighed. "It didn't end the way he wanted it to, though."

"No it didn't."

For a moment neither spoke, each lost in their own thoughts. Finally Sari said. "Dad, I'm worried about Prowl."

"Whatever for?"

"Well..." she grasped for the right words. "He's been having a real challenge with his temper."

"He just needs to get used to having his new emotions," he said, turning away from the screen. "He's hasn't adjusted to it yet. It probably feels weird."

She thought about that explanation for a moment then remembered something the cyber ninja said earlier. "Maybe you're right," she agreed. "But still he can't let them control him like he does. He could get somebody hurt, even killed...."

Professor Sumdac sensed there was more to her words than simple worries. "What happened?"

She explained. When she was finished Isaac shook his head. "I can't believe that."

"I'm not lying," she insisted. "He almost killed Henry Masterson. I know he and Mr. Powell have caused us both a lot of trouble in the past but neither of them deserve something like that. As I watched him I felt some kind of weird feeling coming from him, as if.." she looked away. "As if he was _enjoying_ it. Like he was thinking "I've waited a long time for this." That's _not _Prowl! Something is _wrong_!" she wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed them as if she caught a chill. "I know his emotions are more open than they were when he was a robot but I don't want him to kill anyone. I'm scared... what if he-" she cut herself off. She didn't even want to think about such things.

Professor Sumdac put a hand on her arm. She looked over at him. "Sari, calm down," he said. "I don't think Prowl would do anything like that, even though he's like you now. If he's having problems maybe you could help him."

She stared at him, unable to comprehend what he meant. "Help him?" she asked. "How can I help him?"

"Teach him how to have better control of his emotions," Isaac suggested. "It's hard for people to get used to things when their body goes through changes. This is almost the same thing only on a different level. When you told me what happened to him I knew it wouldn't be easy for him. It wasn't easy for you to learn to control yourself when you got your upgrade, remember?"

She did. She'd gone crazy and blew up stuff. Even after she and her dad had gone home she'd still had some trouble. Sometimes when she'd touched things, like the TV, she'd short circuit it. It had taken quite awhile for her to gain the control she had now and even now she sometimes messed up. She hadn't considered that Prowl might be going through something similar. It made her feel sorry for him.

"But what if he refuses my help?" she asked after a moment.

Isaac smiled. "Don't worry," he said. "I have a feeling he'll be more than happy to let you lend a hand."

* * *

"Prowl..."

Prowl kept his eyes shut, ignoring the voice. He knew who it was. He didn't want to be bothered, not right now, especually by the speaker. _He's probably here to rub it in. _he figured, feeling a headache coming on. _I don't want to deal with him right now._

"Come on, Prowl," the voice said persisted. "Can you come down from the Astral Plain for a moment? Please?"

Prowl spoke without opening his yes. "Go away, Bumblebee."

"But I have something important I want to say to you," Bee insisted.

Prowl sighed, figuring he'd let Bumblebee say what he had to say then kick him out, and opened his eyes. "All right," he said, looking up at the yellow Autobot. "Let's hear it." _Go ahead and rub it in._

Bumblebee took a deep breath and sighed it out as if he was having a hard time saying what he had to say. Finally he said. "I'm sorry."

Prowl was surprised. He hadn't expected that. He stared at him in disbelief. "Really?"

"Yes," Bee said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm sorry for what happened yesterday. I shouldn't have run you off the road like I had. I should have just left you alone."

Prowl was silent for a moment, letting his words process. It was always hard for Bee to admit he was wrong. This might be the only time he would so Prowl would take it. "It's all right," he told him. "I forgive you. Just don't do it again."

Bumblebee grinned and agreed he wouldn't. "But you know," he said on his way out. "The look on your face when that happened _was_ pretty funny."

The look on Prowl's face told now him he begged to differ. Bee laughed nervously and stepped out of the room. "I'll leave you alone to your medications now." and he took off down the hall.

Prowl frowned. "It's not medications!" he called after him. "It's medi_ta_tions!"

_A/N_

_Temper temper. Prowl's gotta work on his temper. This fic needed more action anyway. XD Bee needed a talking to. I figured the explanation would sound logical. I hope so. I don't want Prowl to become psychotic. To be completely honest I don't really like this chapter that much. _

_BTW Marshell, Fanzone has no reason to be following them around all the time. He's got motive for doing so, so why do you keep thinking that?_

_Also I want to bring Starscream back but I have no way of doing it. _


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

Sari went to the plant after breakfast. She'd sat up most of the night going over the privious days incidents, playing them over and over in her mind. She considered what her father had said. He was right after all. Nobody else had much time to spend helping Prowl out with his emotional issues so it was up to her. The other Autobots couldn't help him, they didn't understand what was going on with him, not really. It would be way too hard for them to emphasize with him.

_So it all winds up in my lap, _she realized, feeling a little annoyed. _I'm the only one with the time and patience. Its not like he won't accept my help. He's been letting me help him already. I just hope his pride doesn't make him refuse it... _she sat up, her answer already decided. _All right. I'll do it. _

She looked up at the plant now. At this time of day it was quiet. She wasn't sure if the Autobots were still asleep, or they were out, or what. She hadn't been able to contact them and had just come right over. _I won't know standing out here, _she realized. Casting a quick look around herself she sighed and stepped inside. The moment she entered the building she heard the sound of violence coming from the living area. It sounded like somebody was in a fight....not a fight, a war! She started running, not knowing what was happening but determined to find out and help if she could.

When she entered the living area she looked around herself, her hands opened and a blue orb of energy in them, searching for trouble. She did not see anything out of place or any bolts of pink plasma hitting the walls. She didn't hear any grunts or body blows either.

_Huh?_

That's when she turned her head sideways. Bumblebee was sitting on the sofa with his back turned to her. The sounds were coming from his direction.

She walked over to him. "Bumblebee," she said uncertainly.

He jumped then looked over his shoulder. When he saw her he smiled. "Hey, Sari," he said.

"Hi, uh.. what are you doing?" she asked.

"Playing _Halo_," he replied, turning back to the TV. She saw a barren landscape and men in powersuits running around. "Oh. For a moment I thought there was some kind of trouble."

"Nope." he looked back at her. "What are you doing here?"

"I came here to talk to Prowl about something," she replied. "It's important."

He frowned. "Prowl's in his room medicating himself."

She blinked. "What?"

"He's doing that yogi stuff he always does in the morning," the young Autobot replied. "I don't think he wants to be bothered right now."

"Oh." she turned away. "Well either way I still have to talk to him."

"I wouldn't do that now if I were you." he warned. "You know how he is in the morning."

She ignored him and stepped out of the room. She walked down the hall toward Prowl's she was right outside the room she stopped to listen. A low humming sound came from the other side of the door. _So Bee was right, _she thought. _If he's doing that it might not be a good idea to bother him. I could always come back later..._

"I know you're out there," a voice suddenly spoke up, startling her. "You might as well come in, Sari."

The girl pushed the blind-like door to the side and poked her head in. "How did you know it was me?" she asked.

Prowl, who was sitting at the base of the tree in the lotus position, smirked at her. "Because you're the only one whose footsteps don't cause earthquackes."

_Oh. _She stepped into the room. "What are you doing?"

"Meditating."

"Why?"

"I figured it would be helpful."

"Helpful with what?"

He sighed and looked right at her. "I've been having some problems controlling my emotions as you have seen," he explained. "My temper has been making me do things I wouldn't ordinarily do. I used to do this before when I was a robot. It helped me control my emotions then so I figured I'd do it now as well. Since I haven't done much of it since we got back. I think it might also explain things.."

"How's it going?" she wanted to know.

He sighed again. "Not very well," he admitted. "Every time I try to clear my mind it just fills with worries. I'm having a hard time keeping my mind on one thing."

"Well that's just how humans are," she told him, walking over to him and sitting down beside him. "Clearing ones mind of all the problems and worries of life is a bit harder for us than it is for robots."

"But I've seen people on television do it all the time," he told her.

She laughed. "That's TV," the girl pointed out. "Things always seem easy on TV. Believe me, Prowl. If those people have that kind of control of their minds it didn't happen over night. It took them years to get that far."

"Then I shouldn't have a problem," he grumbled.

"But you are," she pointed out. "and it's got nothing to do with experience."

He looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"You've never been a human before," she explained, thinking of what her father had told her. "You've been a machine for millions of years or whatever. Now suddenly you're an organic being. You might have thought the change would be easy and you wouldn't have any problems but as you've seen you were wrong. You have to get used to everything. It's not that easy to go from being a powerful machine with all the advantages that goes with it to being an organic creature with powerful emotions and many limitations." she looked him right in the eye. "If it had been easy you wouldn't learn anything from it. It has to be hard because you need to develop understanding and control of your mind and body."

He stared at her without comment. How was Sari so smart about things like that? Where did she get all that knowledge? When she was a kid she'd never been like that. _It must have come with the upgrade. _

"Is that the only reason you came to see me?" he wanted to know.

"No," she replied, putting a hand on his shoulder and looking right in his eyes. "I came because I want to help you."

* * *

Megatron was able to get in contact with Strika the leader of Team Charr. Through their comlinks which were set to a very coded frequency, they discussed the next step. Megatron, to avoid getting caught, had to leave the planet. It was fine with him. Without Omega Supreme or the All Spark there wasn't much of a chance of him doing any damage on the planet without problems or getting caught. Besides: with nothing to give him an advantage it would have been like a sparkling going up against a Predacon.

Plus, he had something he needed to deal with off world anyway and he couldn't wait to get started.

The Decepticon looked down at Barricade. The defected Autobot was still offline from when Megatron had thrown him against the wall. He stared at the police officer for a long moment, contemplating what he was going to do with him. The black colored Autobot wasn't like most of his fraction. Plenty of others were whimpy little do gooders that did everything for the empowering of the people or whatever. This guy seemed more selfish. He had, after all, killed two of his own comrades without thinking about it. He didn't even seem remorseful about it either. That was actually a good thing. It made him interesting.

But Barricade wasn't the only "interesting" Autobot. Megatron had heard stories about others and knew a few of them personally. Even Blackarachnia had once been an Autobot but only he knew that. The problem with her was that she was missing and he had no way of finding her. It was almost as if the femme had ceased to exist. Not that that fact bothered him in the very least.

If she was dead; good riddens.

He shook his head. Now wasn't the time to think about that. He stepped over to Barricade and poked him lightly with his foot. "Time to wake up, my Autobot friend," he said.

Barricade stirred and his optics lit up to full brilliance. He turned his head and stared up at the large Decepticon towering over him. "Huh?" he looked like he had no idea how he'd ended up on the floor.

"It's time to go," the gray Decepticon said before he asked. "and I need you to act as my shield, my Autobot friend."

Barricade frowned at him but said nothing. The Decepticon could tell he wasn't happy about the way he'd been treated. He got up and started for the door, still not speaking. Just as he reached out a hand to touch it, the door blew open, a shot sending him flying across the room.

Megatron saw this happen and came running just as ten Autobot Elite Guard officials stormed into the room. Among them was Sentinel Prime. When the Prime saw Megatron he stared at him for a moment like he couldn't believe who he was seeing. That didn't last very long. He quickly shook it off. "You!" he exclaimed as the other Primes aimed their weapons at the Decepticon.

The Decepticon Commander pulled out his sword. "I should have known they'd send their lap dog to capture me," he said. "Too bad you'll never accomplish it, unlike your second rate comrade."

Sentinel knew who he was talking about. He glared at Megatron has he pulled out his lance and shield. "I only came here to take Barricade into custody for two accounts of murder," he said, stepping toward him. "But you're an unexpected bonus. Don't expect to get away this time. I'm not like that slag head Optimus. I won't make the same mistake he did."

Megatron smirked. "And what would that be?"

"Letting you live!" and he rushed forward.

Megatron blocked the strike from the Autobot's lance. "So you would resort to murdering me instead of taking me back to face justice for my crimes?" he questioned as he fought with the blue colored Prime. He didn't need a weapon to defeat this little wannabe. His mouth curled into a mocking sneer. "Not very Autobot of you, now is it?"

"Shut up!" Sentinel yelled, swinging at him again. "What would you know about it?"

"Enough to know that you're nothing but a hypocrite," the Decepticon shot back, shoving him away. "You say one thing in front of everyone but behind closed doors you do just the opposite." Sentinel bounced off his comrades like a wrestler off the ropes. When they moved forward to help he barked. "Take care of Barricade! I'll deal with the Decepticon!"

Megatron smirked. "You'll _deal_with me?" he said stepping back when the Autobot swung wildly. "You're in no place to deal with anyone but I guess you feel as if you have something to prove. Since that other Prime was able to take me out by himself. I wonder, are you jealous?"

Sentinel's face turned red. "I'm _not_ jealous!" he roared, swinging at him again.

"No?" Megatron caught him on the wrist and slammed his back against the wall. "I beg to differ," he said, getting right into his face. "You're jealous of Optimus Prime because he was the one who captured me instead of you. You wanted all the glory for yourself but you never did anything to deserve it. You, and I'll use an Earth word here, suck."

"I do _not_ suck!" Sentinel yelled, kicking at him. "And don't use organic words on me!"

Megatron moved back to avoid the kick. "Oh, but you do," he told him. "and that is why you've never been able to accomplish anything worth while." he grinned at him. "But don't worry. I'm sure you'll get your break eventually, though it'll be in the after life." he swung around, letting go of the Prime. Sentinel went flying until he crashed into his backup who had followed his order and went after the traitor. Barricade who was shooting at them with his own blaster, trying to keep them at bay, when the blue robot crashed into them, knocking them all to the floor..

He stared down at the heap of Autobots for a moment then looked at Megatron. The Decepticon stepped toward him. "Come. We had better leave now." he said more an order than a suggestion.

Barricade didn't move for a moment. He contemplated going with Megatron or staying there. Right now he was starting to regret helping Megatron because the Decepticon wasn't exactly acting grateful. But if he stayed here Megatron would kill him or he would just leave him there to deal with his own arrest and trial for being a traitor. Considering that helped him make up his mind. He'd rather be with Megatron then go to jail and lose his mind like Wasp had. He looked down at the others. Sentinel glared up at him. "You'll pay for this, you dirty traitor!" he snapped.

Barricade smirked. "I doubt that," he told him. "But I welcome you to try." he looked at Megatron then back at Sentinel. "By the way I never liked you. I always thought you were a big headed control freak."

Sentinel sputtered, unable to think of a comeback.

"Just remember; I'm not the one at fault here." he pointed it blaster at him. "_You _are!" _You and the whole corrupted system!_

Then he fired.

* * *

Prowl considered Sari's offer. She of course knew everything about being an organic since she was born one. He knew very little, though at one point he thought he knew more about the species than most humans did. Oh how wrong he was. She was willing to help him get ahold of himself. That was not a bad idea at all. He already knew he couldn't do it by himself. His emotions were his worst enemy.

After a moment he nodded. "All right," he told her.

She smiled. "Great!" she said, getting up. "Then let's get started."

He looked unsure. "Now?"

"Of course _now_," she said, looking down at him with her hands on her hips. "There's no better time to start something than the present." she reached down and grabbed his arm. "Now come on. Time's awasting and we have a lot of work ahead of us."

He let her pull him up and lead him out of the plant. "I think we should begin our first lesson at the park," she said. "There's always plenty of people to observe there and they usually have different emotions." she nodded to herself, smiling. "Yes, the park is the perfect place to start."

* * *

Bumblebee noticed the two techno organic humans heading out of the plant. "Hey!" he called, rushing after them. "Where are you going?"

"To the park," Sari replied, turning back to him. Prowl also stopped and looked up at the young Autobot.

"Oh," Bee said. "Want me to give you a lift?"

She shook her head. "Not this time, Bumblebee," she replied. "This is just between me and Prowl. Human things. You wouldn't really be helpful."

"Oh," he said again, looking upset. "All right."

"See you later," she said waving as she led Prowl out of the building.

"Yeah," Bee said, folding his arms. He was not the least bit happy as this turn of events. "See you later too."

"You do know she's not doing it on purpose, don't you?" said a voice behind him when the two were out of earshot.

"I know she's not!" Bee snapped, looking over his shoulder. Bulkhead stood behind him. The large green robot had an amused expression on his face.

"Then why are you acting so upset?" the bigger robot asked. "Are you jealous."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Bulkhead," the yellow Autobot grumbled.

Bulkhead grinned. "Sure you don't."

"Mind your own business!"

* * *

"Are you sure you want to walk?" Prowl asked once they were outside in the parking lot in front of the plant. "It could take us hours to get there on foot."

She looked at him and smiled. "Exactly."

"What?!"

She put her hands on her hips and gave him a look. "Prowl, are you getting lazy?" she demanded. "Walking is good for you. Before I got my upgrade I'd walk to the plant all the time, well actually I'd rollar-blade but it was still exercise.. It's not going to hurt."

It wasn't that he didn't like exercise, he just felt that she had more on her mind than fresh air. "But why do you want to walk?"

"Because then we can talk," she replied, walking past him. "and what I want to talk to you about will take awhile." she looked back at him. "Plus I don't want the others hearing what I have to say. I don't think they should know...yet."

"Oh." Prowl had a feeling he knew what this was about. _The incident that took place yesterday evening, _he realized. _She wants to talk about that again. But why? _He didn't want to discuss it further. He didn't even want to be reminded. But he was glad she didn't want to discuss it around the others.

It was best if they didn't know, especially Bumblebee.

"Why do you want to talk about is?" he asked as they walked down the street. "I thought you'd want to just forget it happened."

"I'm worried," she admitted.

He knew of only one thing that she'd be upset about. "About my temper?"

"That and something else.." she paused then blurted out. "I'm afraid you might get arrested."

He looked confused. "Arrested? Why would I get arrested?"

"Henry can charge you with assault and you could be sent to jail," she explained. "I think he might have already."

"Why do you say that?"

"Captain Fanzone came by the tower earlier," she explained, looking at him. "He asked about you."

Prowl frowned. "Why would he go there if he wanted to talk to me?" he wanted to know. "He knows where I live. He could have just come here."

"I don't know," she replied, shrugging. "Maybe he figured you came to live with us or something. All I know is that he came by and said something to Dad about an assault. He wanted to have you come in for questioning since the victim said you were responsible." she looked up into his face. "I think he wants to hear your side of the story."

Prowl felt a chill. If that was true... "Do you think Masterson told him?"

"I doubt he told the truth," she replied. "He probably made something up to cover his sorry butt. He didn't want to admit starting the whole thing. Him and that freak show. That's another reason why we're walking. I want to stop by Captain Fanzone's house and discuss this with him. If you tell him what_ really _happened it would make things easier. He already doesn't like Henry and you're his friend. It would be better if you go to his house and clear this up. It'll keep you out of the news and keep the others from finding out about it."

The cyber ninja was unsure. "I don't know..." he said hesitantly.

"If you don't you could wind up in jail," she pointed out. "and we all know what happens to men with pretty faces in jail."

He honestly didn't know but from the look on her face he could tell it was bad. He nodded reluctantly. "All right," he consented. "Let's go." _I want to get this whole thing cleared up as soon as possible. There's no sense prolonging it. _

* * *

"So he attacked you first? I should have figured he'd do somethin' like that," Captain Fanzone said, leaning back in his chair. The three were sitting in Captain Fanzones livingroom. The man's wife had brought in some cookies but nobody was eating them, though Prowl was drinking some herbal tea.

The cyber ninja nodded. "Yes he did," he confirmed. "But I shouldn't have reacted the way I had."

"From what you just told me, you had every reason to act the way you did," the police chief said, looking at him. "If you hadn't done what you did he and his steroid buddy would have done far worse to you." he looked at Sari. "Maybe more to her."

Sari didn't reply. She just folded her arms and gave him a look that said she wasn't happy with what he was implying.

"But I can see what you mean as well," he said, looking back at Prowl. "You overreacted and you're aware of that. You lost your temper and almost committed something you're not comfortable doing."

Prowl looked away. "I was just stupid."

"At least you admit it."

"Captain!" Sari shouted.

"Hey, we all know it's true, cupcake," he told her, making a helpless gesture. She looked away. "He lost his temper and saw red. It happens and while I'm not condoning what he did, it _was_ in self defense. I can't exactly arrest him on self defense."

"No, you can't," she agreed. "So what are you going to do then?"

"For one I'm going to let him off with a warning," the police chief replied. He looked at Prowl. "Next time you run into trouble don't let your emotions get the best of ya. It's not like you at all and it bothers me that you did it. If you want to avoid getting into trouble don't let it happen again."

Prowl nodded.

"Secondly," Captain Fanzone said, getting out of his chair. "I'm gonna arrest Henry for assault and attempted murder."

"You don't have to do that-" Prowl started to say.

Fanzone shot him a correcting look and he fell silent. "I do have to do this," he told him. "If I don't things will just get worse... for both of you."

* * *

A half hour later Prowl and Sari entered the park. The cyber ninja took a deep breath and sighed it out. He hadn't been to the park since they'd returned to the plant. Now that he was a human it seemed different. Probably because he didn't tower over everyone else now. He smiled to himself. He was feeling better now.

When he felt Sari put her hand in his, he looked down at her. She smiled nervously. "You ready to get started?"

He nodded. "About as ready as I'll ever be."

_A/N_

_And now... welcome to weirdness on a different level. XD Not all the chapters have humor. This fic is a mix between humor and seriousness and stuff like a lot of books I've read, like: Maximum Ride, Artemis Fowl, and the Sister's Grimm. All good stories need a perfect balance of all types of categories. Makes for great reading if I do say so myself. XD_

_Of course I use those books as examples because they're for all ages and don't suck like a lot of books for older people that I've read and they don't have an over abundance of language like those Stephen King novels. No offense to those who like his work but all that language just ruins a good story. _

_One more thing: Certain parts I don't want to drag out because in ruins the story and they get boring. I'm trying not to drag out anything because I hate when I do. _


	11. Chapter 11

* * *

CHAPTER 11

"I'm telling you I'm _not _jealous!" Bumblebee shouted, turning his head to glare at Bulkhead. Bee had gone back into the livingroom to play his Xbox and get his mind off everything. Bulkhead had followed him, sensing that he was annoying him and finding it amusing. He wasn't about to let his friend get lost in the world of Halo.

"Then why are you acting so defensive?" the large green Autobot wanted to know.

"Because I feel like it." _Sparks, that was lame!_

"You feel like being defensive but you're not jealous?" the big green robot said, making a confused face. "That doesn't make any sense. If you're not jealous you shouldn't feel defensive, though I don't see why you're even acting like this in the first place. It's just Prowl. Why should you care if she spends time with Prowl?"

"Because he-" Bee stopped himself and walked over to the TV. He hooked up his video game and sat down on the couch, picking the controller up off the worn cushion. "Oh forget it. You wouldn't understand."

"No, I don't," Bulkhead said, resting his forearms on the back of the couch. He cocked his head. "Prowl's not going to do anything to her. He told me once that he considers her his student. It's not like he thinks of her differently now."

"You don't know that," Bee grumbled, glaring at the TV screen. "You heard Optimus. He's got loopy emotions right now. Who knows what that's doing to him? He could-" he stopped himself. He didn't want to entertain those kinds of thoughts. It wasn't healthy, especially when he pictured Prowl doing them with Sari.

"You're just being paranoid."

Bumblebee jumped out of his seat and got into Bulkhead's face. "I'm _not_ being paranoid!" an alien jumped out from behind a rock and ate Master Chief. "Now look what you did!"

Bulkhead grinned a big grin but didn't say anything. His expression said more than Bumblebee wanted to know. He started laughing hysterically. "You _are _jealous!"

"Ah, shut up," Bee growled, turning his face back to the TV screen. "Shows how much _you_ know."

* * *

Prowl and Sari walked around the park, observing families and single people who came to the place. Since it was summer the park was more crowded than usual. Some of the children were using the local pool. Prowl watched them laughing and squealing as they jumped into the water or slid down the slides. Sari watched him, aware that he might ask a question. She didn't know what he'd ask about so she had to be ready for anything.

"You know what I always thought didn't make any sense," he said suddenly.

_Here we go. _"What?"

"Humans," he began. "You.. uh, they, always put on layers of clothing when it gets cold and when it gets hot they take them off." he was silent for a moment then said. "Why can't they just be satisfied with the weather? When it's hot they want it cold when it's cold they want it hot." he looked at her. "Why it that?"

Sari's mind seemed to shut down. She could not think of any explanation. _This is going to be harder than I thought. _"Uh..." she said, groping for an answer. "It's really complicated. I don't know if I can explain it." she thought a moment then admitted. "I guess it's because humans are picky. They can't decide what they want, especially when it comes to the weather."

He frowned. She could tell he didn't like her answer. He looked back at the children in the pool. She could sense he was about to ask another question so she beat him to it. "People go swimming in pools because it's fun."

"Fascinating." he studied it for a moment then commented. "It seems humans only find water amusing when it's at their disposal. Like on a beach or a pool. But when it rains they do their best to avoid it."

_Oh boy. _She grabbed his arm and led him away. "Come on, let's find something else to look at."

She led him over to another part of the park where is was much quieter. Prowl observed a couple walking hand in hand. He'd seen plenty of couples doing that when he was a robot and had wondered even then why they did it. He knew why robots did that sometimes but he didn't know if humans did it for the same reasons. He'd meant to ask about it but never had the time. "Sari."

"Yes?"

He pointed at the couple. "I've always wondered why human couples hold hands," he told her. "Why do they do that?"

"Because they like each other," she told him. "It has something to do with love."

"Love?"

"Yeah," she said. "Don't tell me you've never heard of it."

"Of _course _I have," he told her. "Don't you think transformers can love?"

"I am perfectly aware that transformers can love," she shot back, putting her hands on her hips. "Just looking at Ratchet and Arcee tells me that much. I'm just surprised that you would ask me that."

"Because transformers don't hold hands when they are in love," he replied. "Not like that. They do it for other reasons where I come from."

She almost asked him what that was but chose not to. "Well that's what people do when they love each other," she explained. "It's a very popular." _How can it mean things differently for robots? When Ratchet and Arcee hold hands it clearly means they have feelings for each other. Maybe cyber ninjas don't..._

"Oh." he fell silent then said. "I feel stupid."

"Why?"

"I'm asking such childish questions," he looking at her. "I should already know these things. I've seen enough of it."

"Don't be so hard on yourself," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You can't know everything."

"Hmm." he folded his arms then changed the subject. "Why don't we look somewhere else now?"

She was more than ready to move on. "Okay."

* * *

Megatron boarded Team Charr's starship the _Darksyde _a few hours after the incident in Barricade's apartment. Barricade was still with him though he wasn't sure why. He knew his usefulness had ended hours ago. Something else must be keeping the Decepticon Commander from killing him, he figured.

When the two stepped into the control room of the ship all the weapons were trained on the Autobot's chest.

"Stand down!" Megatron ordered.

Strika stared at him, a little uncertain. "But he is an Autobot!" the large femme protested, her accent as thick as ever. "Why is he even on this ship?"

"Because I want him to," Megatron informed her. "He is the one who broke me out of the stockade and I don't wish for his termination just yet." he looked down at Barricade. The Autobot met his gaze for a moment then looked away. "I am considering letting him join our fraction if he proves trustworthy."

The other Decepticons exchanged looks but didn't comment. They all put their weapons away. Megatron smirked. "Much better." he looked over at Barricade. "Why don't you make yourself comfortable? We will discuss your initiation later."

The Autobot nodded, but he wasn't sure he liked the idea. He didn't comment on it though. That would not be a wise decision.

Now that that was done Megatron turned back to Strika. She had her arms folded and she did not look very happy. He knew she did not like it that he was allowing an Autobot to come with them but he didn't care about her feelings. He was the leader here, not her. Even if it was her ship. Soon that little problem wouldn't be an issue any longer. Before she could say anything about it he walked past her and looked out the ship's windshield. "Strika," he said suddenly. "Set a course for Earth."

"Earth?" she exclaimed, startled. "Why would you want to go back to Earth? That planet is overrun with humans."

"I have unfinished business on Earth," he replied, looking back at her. "Now obey my order, or do I have to have you replaced?"

She held his gaze for a moment then turned away, focusing her attention on Cyclonus. "You heard him," she snapped. "Take this boat to Earth!"

* * *

Prowl and Sari had moved to a much quieter part of the park where the trees grew thick and healthy. They'd spent the last hour observing people doing stuff and Sari did her best to explain things though most of the stuff he already knew or figured out himself. Eventually they just gave up and walked around, enjoying the rest of the morning. Sari felt a bit disappointed. Things weren't as easy as she thought they would. As time went on he asked less and less questions. She wasn't sure if that was because he knew the answers or because he didn't want her to short circuit her brain trying to explain things. Emotions weren't the easiest things to to understand.

"Don't worry about it, Sari," he told her. "Next time I want to learn about an emotion I'll wait until I experience it for myself before asking you about it."

"Okay." _That'll probably make things much easier. At least then he won't be observing it second hand. _that got her wondering. _I wonder what kind of emotions he's experiencing right now? _

Until then she'd been grabbing his hand or putting her on his shoulder. If he had been a normal human she bet he would be acting like those morons she saw on those date movies. But this was Prowl. He wasn't likely to feel anything from that, techno organic or not. She looked up at his face. It was rather handsome. She nearly feel over when she realized what she was thinking. _Whoa! Where did that come from? _

Prowl , who was blissfully unaware of her thoughts, looked up at the trees. They were fully covered in leaves right now because it was summer. He heard birds singing and smiled. Sari noticed the look and her weird thoughts vanished. "What?" she asked.

"Nothing," he said, looking at her. "I was just thinking how peaceful it is here."

"Oh." she looked around. "Well it is pretty quiet here. I wonder if nobody comes here very often." _Here we are. Alone together. Just you and me. _she gasped, realizing what she was thinking. _Stop that!_

He smiled, still not noticing the look on her face or the fact that it was turning red. "It's nice."

"Yeah," she agreed, keeping her voice level. "Hey-"

Suddenly he stopped in his tracks. The girl almost walked into him. "What gives?" she demanded.

"Shhh!" he ordered, putting his finger to his lips. "Do you hear that?"

She just stared at him. "Hear what?"

"Listen."

She fell silent. After a few seconds she became aware of a faint noise. A low mewling. "It sounds like it's coming from over there," she said, pointing toward a clump of bushes.

"Wait here," Prowl said, looking at her. "I'll be right back." he walked cautiously toward the shrubbery. When he reached them he put out his hand and pushed the dark green fronds back. When he saw what was under them he relaxed.

"Prowl?" Sari asked, from the trail. "What is it?"

"Come and see," he told her.

She walked to the spot and looked over his shoulder. There in the grass lay a mother cat and three little kittens. "Aww," Sari cooed. "They're so cute." she reached out a hand to stroke one of the kittens but Prowl grabbed her hand. "Hey, what gives?'

"I wouldn't do that," he told her. He noticed the suspicious look on the mother cats face. "Not unless you want your hand torn off."

Sari pulled it back. "But what are they doing here?" she asked him.

"I don't know," he replied, watching the mother cat. "It seems like she had them here." he slowly moved his hand toward the mother cat. He figured if he was real careful he wouldn't get it shredded. He had always liked cats, even when he was a robot. When mommy cat didn't swat at him he moved the furr from her neck and exposed a ragged red collar. "Somebody owns her."

"Who?"

He touched the tiny brass tag hanging from the collar and read the address printed on it. "Carly Witwicky."

"Carly Witwicky!" Sari exclaimed. "I know that name. Her husband, Spike, works for Dad. I sometimes played with their son. Why would she leave her cat out here?"

"I don't know," Prowl said, getting up. "Mrs. Witwicky might not have left her here. She might have just gotten out of the house or something." he studied the cats for a moment before saying. "I think maybe we should take her home."

"But we can't do that!" she protested.

"Why not?" he demanded.

"Those kittens are still too young to be moved," she pointed out. "Their eyes and ears are all closed up."

"So?"

"They're blind and deaf," she answered. "It would not be wise to move them until they can see and hear.... plus." she looked back at the mother cat. "The mother cat is in Mommy Mode. If you try to move those kittens she'll go after you."

He looked back at the cat. "Why would she do that?" he asked. "We're only trying to help."

"Mothers are very protective of their young," she replied. "If they see people messing with their children they get mean."

"Oh." he watched the mother cat move her head down and start washing one of the kitten's heads. "She must really care for them."

"Yes, she does," the girl agreed. She sat down on the ground and gently reached out her hand. The mother cat sniffed it then allowed her to stroke her furr. "She loves her babies and would rather give her own life then let something bad happen to one of her children."

Prowl joined her and stroked the mother's head. "So she's selfless."

"Exactly." she looked at him, a small smile on her face. "Like another person I know."

"Who?" he asked, looking at her.

She lifted a hand and poked his forehead. "You."

"Me?"

"Remember," she said. "You gave up your life to save the lives of thousands of human beings. " she reached up and laid a hand on his shoulder. "You are not even from this planet and you died to protect it."

He looked into her eyes then down at her hand before looking away. Looking at her at that instant had caused a strange feeling to shoot through him. "I might not be from this planet but I've come to love it as if I was built here," he explained, scratching the mother cat under her chin. Looking at the mother cat was easier than looking at Sari right then. "I could not let Megatron destroy it. There are too many things I care about here-" he shot her a glance. No reaction. Good. "There are too many _people_ I care about as well."

She stared at him. "What do you mean?" she wanted to know.

He looked back at her and opened his mouth as if to explain himself. Then he seemed to reconsider and returned his attention to the cats. "It's not important," he said. "Just forget I said anything."

For some reason Sari felt that it was.

* * *

"Will you leave me alone!" Bumblebee shouted.

Bulkhead was following him around and talking about how Bumblebee was acting toward the whole Prowl and Sari issue. Bulkhead had not left him alone and he wound up abandoning his video game because the big green robot was too distracting.

The other Autobot grinned. "Come on, you have to admit the way you're acting is funny," he prompted. "I mean she's only helping him out with being human and all. I don't see why you're acting so irrational. It's not like they're doing anything else."

"I don't care _what_they're doing!" the yellow Autobot shouted, doing a one-eighty. He got right into Bulkhead's face. "and I'd be happy if you would just stop bothering me about it. I know what she's doing. I don't have to be reminded."

"If you know what she's doing why are you acting like this?" the green robot wanted to know. "If it didn't bother you that she's spending so much time with Prowl since we got back you wouldn't be so upset."

"Will you stop saying that!" Bee snapped. "I just don't see why she couldn't let me come along with them. I'm her best friend for spark's sake!"

Bulkhead stated what should have been obvious. "Maybe because you wouldn't be of help."

"How would you know that?"

"Well are you human?"

"No."

"Then how could you help them?" the large green robot wanted to know. "You don't even care about the stuff they're doing. You told me already. You thought it was boring. You said you'd rather play video games, which seems like the only thing you care about."

"I do _not_ care only about video games!" Bee exploded. "I care about other things too!"

Yeah that was true but since landing on Earth three years ago Bumblebee seemed to care more about the electronic junk the planet created than anything else. "Then maybe you should show it better."

The yellow colored Autobot pouted. "Ah, leave me alone."

"All right," his friend consented. "Whatever you want. Just remember what I said."

Bee waved him off. "Yeah, yeah."

* * *

Since they couldn't do anything for the mother cat and her kittens they left them where they found them, but remembered to mark the spot so they could come back later. Prowl wanted to bring mommy cat some food when he had the chance. Plus he had to remember to let Carly know where they were so she could come get them herself.

"So what now?" Sari asked as she and the cyber ninja walked out of the park. "Where do you want to go now?"

"Your place," he replied instantly. "I still have a few hours worth of driving to finish before I can take the drivers test."

Sari was honestly relieved. Her whole morning and early afternoon had been spent answering Prowl's many questions. She thought she was being helpful but the more questions he asked the more frustrated she'd become. A break was a welcome distraction. _Dad was wrong. I'm not cut out for it at all. _"All right," she agreed. "Dad's probably got lunch waiting for us back at the Tower."

"I hope it's something healthy," she heard him mutter.

* * *

"I hope you're not planning on double crossing him."

Barricade lifted his head to find Oil Slick standing over him. The Decepticon cyber-ninja had his arms crossed and his expression hard as stone under the glass bulb-like cover that protected his face. The police-bot knew right away he and this fish-tank head weren't going to be friends. "I don't know what you mean," he said.

Oil Slick felt that he did. Why else would the Autobot traitor be sitting away from everyone else, brooding? "I don't understand why he has not slagged you yet, but if you want to keep your spark in your chest you'd better not be thinking of double crossing him." the Decepticon leaned toward him, an evil smile on his face. "Because if you are I'll make sure you come to regret it."

Barricade folded his arms and glared at him. The police-bot recognized Oil Slick. He'd once been an Autobot himself. _Who are you to talk? _"There's a waiting list for that," he retorted. "and if you're so worried about me betraying Megatron you don't have to. I have no reason to because I'm wanted for being a traitor. In case you're wondering I was the one who got your precious leader out of the stockade to begin with. If I wanted Megatron to be taken back into custody I would have done so already but I won't."

Oil Slick said nothing. He just stood there, studying the other robot's face. He let what Barricade said sink in. _He got Megatron out of the stockade? By himself?_Finally he straightened up. "All right," he said. "You've made your point, Autobot. But just remember I'll be watching you." then he turned and joined Strika over by the controls.

Barricade watching him go, his mouth turned down with a scowl. _You don't have anything to worry about. I don't intend to betray you. _he looked across the room where Megatron was conversing with Cyclonus, completely ignoring the Autobot. _Not if I know what's good for me._

Megatron noticed him watching them. He frowned at him a moment then returned to his conversation. It was obvious he didn't want to talk to him right now. The Autobot rested one leg on top of the other and folded his arms. _Of course not. He's back where he belongs, thanks to you. If you were thinking this whole thing was a good idea you were wrong. Megatron might think that some things you do are useful and you might amuse him but he doesn't really care about you. You should have just let him leave by himself. But he's the one who chose to come back. You left with him, remember? Somebody must have seen it. That's got to be what happened. _he shook his head.

_Megatron shouldn't have come back. If he did there's a reason behind it. He's probably only using you. _

If that was true why would he allow him to board the ship?

_To make sure you don't do anything stupid._

Yeah that could be it. He didn't trust him. He wanted to make sure he behaved himself. Barricade frowned. _Maybe this wasn't such a good idea._

But if things went south he wouldn't stick around. He too could plan ahead.

* * *

Prowl's driving lesson went smoothly this time around. Professor Sumdac, worried that Prowl would destroy another one of his more expensive cars brought out an old jalopy he'd driven in high school. The blasted thing was rusted in a few places and backfired large clouds of black smoke. It was also slow as molasses, barely topping thirty miles an hour. The cyber ninja felt like an idiot driving it but realized the professor wasn't going to change his mind and gracefully accepted his fate. Well almost gracefully.

He absolutely refused to drive by any place where his Autobot comrades might be hanging out, for fear that they might spot him. This proved hard to do since most of these places were on the main road and most driving lessons happened on main roads where there was lots of space. He didn't care. He did not want Bumblebee to find another reason to laugh it him. Pride one that round.

The second thing he wanted was an air freshener installed. The interior smelled like three month old gym socks and stank to high heaven. Prowl with his sense of smell upped a thousand percent thanks to his new body, nearly died when the inventor opened the door. He refused to get into the driver's seat until the smell was dealt with.

Professor Sumdac made an unpleasant face but installed a lemon scented pine tree on the rear view mirror. "Happy now, your highness?" he'd asked him.

Prowl ignored the jab and opened the driver's side door of the car. Lemons greeted him and he nodded his head. "Exceedingly."

Then they both climbed in and pulled out of the parking lot.

Nothing bad happened this time around and they got quite a few hours logged in before heading back.

_A/N_

_Tehehehe... actually this jealous Bumblebee stuff is very amusing. XD The part with questions was confusing. I don't want him to seem like an idiot yet I want him to be innocent in some things. I'm trying to make those parts understandable and stuff but I have this wall standing between me and certain issues. I can't break through so I don't dwell on them too much. Don't be angry. _

_For Prowl/Sariness. I don't wanna go overload so for now its brief instances of the growing relationship. _


	12. Chapter 12

**I was asked a question so I must explain. It had something to do with the timeline of TFA being in the twenty-second century so why would Bumblebee have an Xbox? I'll say this. The Xbox and the games mentioned in the story are more futuristic plus they have better graphics than the portable racing car game Sari and Bumblebee played in **_**Nature Calls**_**. The Xbox 360 Bumblebee owns is an old model that Professor Sumdac upgraded for him. Though it's a twenty-first century piece of hardware it plays twenty-second century games. **

**To sum it up I have to say... don't ask such stupid questions. **

CHAPTER 12

_Three hours later_

"So how did things go today?"

Prowl, who had just gotten back from Sari's, stopped walking and looked over his shoulder. Bumblebee stood in the doorway to the living area of the plant. His arms were folded and his body leaned against the post. The cyber ninja noted the peculiar expression he wore. "What do you mean?" he asked.

Bee shrugged, raising his hand and shutting off his optics. "Oh you know, the human stuff you and Sari have been doing together," he answered.

"Not very well if you must know," Prowl replied a little frostily. "Turns out understanding human emotions takes more than just an explanation. One must learn these things on their own by actually experiencing them."

"I'm sure they do," Bee said, sounding bored. "So you wasted the entire day not learning anything about humans emotions."

"I learned _something_," Prowl replied, folding his arms. "Sari was very helpful in clearing up a few things but we didn't accomplish much except learning about something called the Mommy Mode."

Bumblebee made a face. "Mommy Mode?"

"Something female warm blooded animals go into when their kids are in trouble."

"Oh." Bee started giggling. "Mommy Mode. Wow, Prowl, you come up with such original names."

"That wasn't the name _I _gave it," the cyber ninja informed him impatiently. "Sari called it that."

"Oh." the yellow Autobot was silent for a moment then asked. "So what are you plans for tomorrow?"

"I'm taking my drivers test," Prowl replied. "and don't even think about interfering. The test is stressful enough without you getting in the way."

"Hey, I'm not going to do anything," Bee informed him. He knew better than to do that, especially with how Prowl had been acting the past few days. Plus he didn't need another lecture from Optimus."You don't have anything to worry about."

"Good." the cyber ninja turned to walk away. "I'm glad you understand that."

"So what are you doing after that?" Bee wanted to know, following him down the hall. "Are you and Sari planning anymore trips to the park together?"

"Why do _you _care?" the cyber ninja wanted to know, looking over his shoulder.

"Oh, no important reason ," the yellow Autobot said evasively. "I just wanted to know because I was planning on hanging out with her tomorrow."

"I don't know what she's planning," Prowl replied. "She did make a suggestion that we go back to the park later on but I don't know when that will happen." he shrugged. "You can always ask her."

"I think I will," Bumblebee said a little nastily. "and it will just be her and I_. You_ can do something else for awhile."

The cyber ninja frowned. Bumblebee was acting funny. "What is wrong with you?" he demanded. "You're acting like I should care what you and her are planning."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because your tone says 'I'm hanging out with her whether you like it or not'," he pointed out. "Bumblebee I don't know what your problem is but I don't care what you and Sari do. Why should I? It's not like we're dating or whatever humans of the opposite sex do when their alone together."

"Who said you _were_?" Bee snapped. "I know I didn't. You shouldn't even be considering that. You're ten million years older than her. She's too young for you!"

Prowl stared at him like he'd lost his mind. "Are your parts rusted or something?" he asked. "Do you think we're in some kind of relationship? Is this what this is about?"

Bee suddenly realized he'd said too much. He looked away and tried to act as if he'd meant something else. "No," he said quickly. "Why would you think that?"

Prowl's expression changed to annoyance. He walked over to Bee and kicked him hard in the foot, an action that was quickly becoming a habit. "Ow!" the young Autobot yelled, grabbing his foot and hopping around. "What did you do that for?"

"Because you're an idiot," the cyber ninja replied, folding his arms. "Sari and I aren't involved with each other. I don't even know why you would think such a thing. She is just helping me understand human emotions. No other human I know has the time or patience. If you think there is more going on than that you must have something wrong with your processor." he spun around and started to walked away. "One more thing." he added, looking over his shoulder. "You shouldn't be pointing out my age as a reason for me not being able to be with her when _you're_ almost as old as I am."

Then, before Bumblebee could say anything to that Prowl marched down the hall and went into his room.

* * *

Since it would be awhile before the ship reached Earth, Barricade decided to walk around and familiarize himself with the _Darksyde's_ interior. He had two reasons for this:

One so he would not get lost and two; if he knew his way around the ship he could find the exits and escape pods easily in case Megatron decide he had further out lived his usefulness. If the Decepticon chose to have him removed he wasn't about to just sit back and let him do it. Not without a fight.

To be honest he was beginning to question the wisdom of his choices. Maybe releasing Megatron was a mistake? Maybe he should have just left him in the stockade or reported the Decepticon's message when he first got it. But he couldn't change anything now even if he wanted to.

He had gone into the muck too far to turn around. He was stuck with both legs. He was wanted for at least three acounts of murder and was branded a traitor. If he wanted to redeam himself it would be next to impossible, especially after Sentinel told what had happened in the apartment. Sentinel was still alive. He hadn't killed him. He wanted him to suffer or at least that was the excuse he'd used.

So he had only one choice. Stay with the Decepticons and become one if it came to that. He already knew he had what it took to become one. Killing mindlessly and not even feeling guilty about it. That was it. He didn't mind killing. He _enjoyed _it. He couldn't wait to do it again.

But he wasn't exactly pure Decepticon in his thinking. There were still plenty of Autobot qualities and he wasn't going to lose them if he could help it. He'd keep his free will and, if things got worse, he knew what he had to do.

Hopefully he wouldn't have to do anything at all.

What he didn't notice was that Oil Slick was following him as he moved from room to room. Nobody had asked the former Autobot cyber ninja to do this. He'd appointed himself unoffical chaperone for the Autobot. He was going to make sure he didn't try anything. If he did he'd deal with him quickly and quietly.

* * *

Prowl stepped into his room and closed the blind-like doors behind him. He walked over to his tree and sat down under it, taking a book out of the bag he'd been carrying under his arm. He picked it up, reading the cover. _The Idiots Guide To Meditation. _He frowned. He hated that title. Why did books that simplified everything have to call people idiots? He'd only taken the book out because he suspected that human meditation and robot meditation was different somehow. He figured he'd read about it and compare them. If they were similar he would that the book back. It was from the library anyway so he wouldn't be losing out.

He sat back and opened it but didn't read. He started thinking about his conversation with Bumblebee instead.

The young mech seemed to think Prowl and Sari were doing more than just playing school. He thought they were having some kind of relationship, a romantic one. That was absured. Prowl didn't even think of Sari in that way. She was a friend. She was always a friend. Why would he think differently about her?

_Because you're human now, _a voice in his head replied. _You're like Sari now so that would do it. You and her have been spending a lot of time together since you came back and been stiffing Bumblebee. It wouldn't be too hard to come to such a conclusion. and admit it. You __**like **__spending time with Sari._

Of course he did. They were friends. When he had been a machine he hadn't had time to hang out with Sari because Bee was always doing things with her. He'd wanted to be with her more and do things but it never happened. Their set of interests hadn't exactly complimented each other. He liked nature and she liked video games. Though she did show an interest in his obstacle course. He smiled. She still couldn't complete it on full power.

Now that he was human he had plenty of reasons to hang out with her. Plus she was willing to take him around and explain things to him. It was nice and he liked her smile....

That thought nearly made him drop his book_. Wait! What? _Where did _that _come from? He liked her _smile?_

_That's right. You like it. It's cute and if you don't agree you're an idiot. _

_But why would I think such a thing? I don't even know where that came from._

_**Sure **__you do. It's only natural. You're starting to think of her as more than just a friend. You love spending time with her. You enjoy when she touches your hand or grabs your shoulder._

_You're crazy!_

_Am I? _

Prowl stood up and shook his head, grabbing it in his hand. "You don't know what you're talking about," he said out loud. "That is impossible. She has reasons for doing things with me. It's not like they're _my_ idea."

_If you didn't want to do them with her you could always tell her no. She's not __**forcing **__you to do them, you know. Admit it. The thought of spending time with her makes you feel all good inside. You're starting to fall for her. _

He frowned, still shaking his head. What a load of nonsense. He was way too old for her, he reminded himself. Even in this body they still had a few years difference. He looked twenty and she looked sixteen. Four years. She wasn't even old enough to vote_. I always thought of her as a daughter, not a girlfriend. I had a girlfriend. I don't want to have another. They just break your heart.... _then another thought wormed its way in. _It wouldn't work out anyway. I'm a serious and stuffy bore and she's a perky ray of sunshine. _

"Argh!" he threw the book across the room. "What am I _thinking_?!"

* * *

Jazz didn't know how things had gone down at Barricade's apartment until Sentinel stepped out of the infirmary. The white cyber ninja could tell that the dark blue robot did not wish to discuss it but he pressed him, knowing he'd find out eventually. Jazz figured he'd hear it first hand. Hopefully Sentinel wouldn't over dramatize it. Knowing him he might exaggerate and make it out worse than it really was if he let too much time pass.

"So what went down when you confronted Barricade?" Jazz asked as they walked down the hall, to the Council Chamber where they would make a report on what happened. Jazz had seen how Sentinel and the others had looked when Red Alert her helpers brought them in. Sentinel had had the worst. His face was nearly blown off. Whatever happened there hadn't turned out the way they'd wanted it to. Just the fact that Barricade wasn't in custody and the Prime's condition told him that.

Sentinle frowned. It was clear he didn't want to talk about it. "It's none of your business," he told him.

Jazz didn't agree. It _was _his business. Barricade was a friend, or used to be one. He'd been a student at Yoketron's dojo for a little while, until he decided he wasn't suited for that kind of thing. Jazz remembered him as being a little shy around fembots, mostly Nightbird and Minerva. Actually he'd had a crush on Minerva though she was almost as old as Yoketron.

The white cyber ninja was having a hard time believing that a former friend of his was involved. "It is," he spoke up. "I knew Barricade. We were cool, you know. I can't believe he would do something like this willingly."

"Well he _did_," Sentinel said snippily. "He killed those two Autobots and he was housing a fugitive right in his own house! A very_ important _fugitive I might add."

"I know who it was," Jazz said irately. "Now what happened?"

Sentinel glared at him as if he thought he was stupid. "What _happened_?" he snapped. "It's simple. I went in there thinking that I only had to arrest a traitor. What I find it said traitor playing house with none other than Megatron Cybertron's number one terrorist!" the Prime slammed his fist into the wall angrily making the cyber ninja jump because he wasn't expecting it. "Nobody told me _Megatron _would be there!"

Jazz almost said something nasty but held himself back. It wouldn't do him any good to insult Sentinel Prime. Not when he was feeling like a fool. He was thinking though: _Maybe they didn't tell you because they wanted to get rid of you. Maybe they all think you're an arrogant jerk and would rather have you die by his hand than somebody useful. _Instead he suggested_. "_Maybe they didn't know he would be there. It's very likely that they concluded that Barricade was responsible for turning Megatron loose and the Decepticon would leave and join his comrades instead of going home with him."

That suggestion sounded logical and Sentinel didn't argue with it. "But they should have least _considered_ it," he grumbled, looking away. "A warning wouldn't hurt. I just hope they find him."

"They will," Jazz assured him. "It's not like they can leave the planet."

But he knew better. Megatron had a lot of contacts. He could get help from anybody. Who knew how many Autobots actually were sympathetic to his cause? Jazz knew of at least two robots, former Autobot Cyber Ninja's that had become Decepticons because of their feelings about everything going on. It had been years since that time but if it could happen once it could happen again. Barricade was proof of that.

Or he could have simply contacted another Decepticon. Not all of them were in the stockade.

_But, _he wondered. _**If **__Megatron did leave the planet __**where **__would he go from here?_

* * *

"I have made a decision!"

Bulkhead looked away from the PBS program he was watching and gave Bumblebee a look of mild curiousity. "What?"

"I'm going to follow them," Bee declared with much conviction.

The green robot made a face. "You're going to _follow _them?" he repeated.

"Yes," Bee replied. "When I confronted Prowl about what they've been doing he denied a little too loudly that they weren't up to anything they shouldn't."

Bulkhead's expression changed to annoyance. This was starting to get a little out of hand. "Bumblebee, why do you even care if they are?" he wanted to know. "Isn't that a little overboard even for you? You told me you're not jealous so..."

"I'm just making sure Prowl isn't doing anything inappropriate," the yellow Autobot informed him defensively. "Sari's too nice a girl for something like that. He shouldn't be doing anything anyway. He's way too old for her. He's old enough to be God."

"Bumblebee, you are aware that he already knows this aren't you?" Bulkhead demanded. "and this is _Prowl _we're talking about! You shouldn't even be considering that kind of thing! Not from him! He's way too polite to try anything even if he wanted to which I doubt. He doesn't think of her that way."

Bumblebee wasn't willing to admit that just yet. "How do _you_ know?" he challenged.

"Because I do!" the other robot said sincerely. "Prowl's a gentlebot. Plus Sari's not even his type. They're not even the same _species_!"

"Bulkhead," Bumblebee addressed him like he was five years old. "he's techno organic now so they _are _the same species."

"But he _still_ thinks like a transformer!"

"Transformers don't go through puberty!" Bee pointed out, bringing up that little tidbit of information. "He's got all those weird human things now so who knows how his mind is working?"

Bulkhead looked shocked that Bumblebee was even thinking such things about Prowl no less. "You _are_ jealous and disgusting to boot."

"I am _not!"_

"Then stop acting like an idiot!" Bulkhead snapped, getting up and towering over him. "Prowl might be techno organic now but that does not mean he's going to act any different. Sure his temper is worse than it used to be but when he's not angry he acts like his old quiet self. Being human is _not_ going to change that."

"How do you know?" Bee challenged.

"I don't," the other bot admitted a little reluctantly. "But-"

"You see!" Bumblebee looked triumphant. "You _don't know_. That is why I'm going to follow them. I'm going to make sure he doesn't."

Bulkhead looked revolted. "Bee, you're overreacting." he stated. "Just leave them alone. If you don't you're libel to embarrass yourself."

But the yellow Autobot wasn't listening. He turned on his heal and stomped out of the room, his mind made up.

"Make sure who doesn't what?" a voice asked.

Bulkhead jumped and looked behind himself. Sari stood there with her hands on her hips. How much had she heard? he wondered.

"Make sure who doesn't what?" she said again. It was obvious that she had only heard the tail end of the conversation.

"Nothing," the big green robot replied, waving his hands in front of himself. "It's not important."

She looked like she didn't believe him but didn't push it. She shrugged. "Whatever. Is Prowl here?"

"He should be in his room."

"Thank you." she turned and headed out of the room.

_I hope Bumblebee doesn't spy on them while she's here. _Bulkhead shook his head. _This is getting a little weird. I hope he gets over whatever it is that's bothering him. _

* * *

"Prowl. Prowl, wake up."

The cyber ninja woke to somebody shaking his shoulder. He groaned and opened his eyes, becoming aware of a stiff neck and back. Sari's face took up his entire field of vision.

"Primus!" he yelled, jumping up, his glasses going askew. The book he'd been reading when he fell asleep, flopped onto the ground. "Sari! Don't do that!"

"Sorry," she said though she didn't really look like she was. "I didn't mean to freak you out." She looked down at the book at his feet. "Were you up all night reading that?"

"Yes," he answered. He grabbed up the book and wiped the dust off of it. "Well I was reading it _half _the night before I fell asleep."

"That boring?"

"No," he said, closing the book and pushing his glasses back into place. His vision was still blurry without them. "I was just tired."

"Oh," she said in a voice that told him she didn't believe him. She pushed herself up then looked down at him with her hands on her hips. "So are you ready to go?"

"Go?" He looked at her, having no idea what she was talking about. "Go where?"

She rolled her eyes. "Where else?" she said. "Today's the day you're taking your driver's test. Dad said you did very well yesterday without Bumblebee to distract you so we're going to take you to get your driver's license." she grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet. "Come on. Dad's waiting in the car."

Prowl let her lead him out of the room and down the hall. As they passed by Bumblebee's room the cyber ninja thought he caught a glimpse of the young Autobot peeking out at them. When he turned his head Bee wasn't there. _Hmmm..._

Once they were outside Sari led Prowl toward the street where their ride sat idling. The cyber ninja saw Professor Sumdac's old college jalopy waiting for them. "Why did he have to bring_ that _car?" he asked out loud. That piece of junk Sumdac called a vehicle was the last machine he wanted to ride in. He was hoping he'd never see that smelly death trap again.

Sari, who didn't know what had happened the day before, gave him a funny look before she ran over to the car and opened the back door that faced the plant. "Come on, Prowl!" she called, waving to him.

He frowned but followed her, not really wanting to climb in for fear of his nostrils being assaulted by the foul gym sock smell. It had nearly sent him back to the Well the last time he'd taken a whiff. Surprisingly the car still smelled like lemons but the was the only good thing. As soon as the inventor pulled out of the parking lot, the car back fired, sending a large black cloud of smoke into the air. This time it was so loud Prowl jumped because he wasn't expecting it.

"Sorry, Prowl," Isaac said, looking in the rear view mirror. "I forgot about that."

"Don't worry about it." _Once I get my license I won't have to worry about it anymore either._

When Professor Sumdac's car pulled onto the freeway another car, a small yellow one pulled up behind them. Prowl was in the middle of a conversation with the Sumdacs and didn't notice. Meanwhile, Bumblebee, who was the yellow vehicle's true identity, stayed close, like some kind of large yellow guard dog but with different intentions.

* * *

They arrived at the place a few minutes later. Prowl climbed out of the car and headed toward the building. "Good luck, Prowl!" Sari called to him.

_I'll need it, _he thought, giving her a small smile.

Once inside Prowl was led to the back parking lot where a dark blue mini-van waited. "The supervisor is already inside," the woman told him. "Good luck." as she walked away he thought he heard her laughing evilly. _What in the world?_

Prowl shrugged it off and opened the door on the driver's side. As soon as he closed the door the supervisor turned to face him. "Hello, young lad."

Prowl took one look at the supervisor and groaned. _What is this? Some kind of twilight zone?_

_A/N_

_I am not very good at making Jazz talk the way he does. _

_I hope you don't mind me moving ahead quickly at certain parts. Sometimes I don't have any ideas for the rest of certain parts of the day so I just move ahead. Bee's acting a bit funny, a bit OOC. I'm gonna have to tone that down a bit. __I__'m writing but I sorta have writer's block. _

_I've got so many ideas for much later stuff that I might not be able to post it all without the story coming out a little weird. Maybe if I stopped creating art for the story. _

_In case you didn't know the sub-plot will eventually merge with the main one, though I think I already told you that. _

_What do you call the person who sits with you when you taking the driving test?_


	13. Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13

The instructor was none other than the Angry Archer. Or at least it _looked_ like him. But, instead of tights, this man wore a green suit. "Uh...." Prowl said. "Hello to you too, uh..."

"Auron," the man said, sticking out his hand. "Auron Archer."

Prowl didn't take the hand. He just stared at the man with the mousy face, noticing he still wore the face mask. "Aren't you uh..that Robin Hood guy?" he asked.

Mr. Archer looked confused. "Robin Hood?" then he started laughing. "Oh! Not Robin Hood, lad. The Angry Archer."

The cyber ninja nodded. "Yeah."

The man kept laughing as he turned in his seat. "Don't worry about that, old bean," he said, waving him off. "I no longer go by that bloody name. I've reformed."

"Really?"

"Really." he confirmed. He help up the item in his hand. "I handed in my tights for a clipboard. I found I enjoy writing young blighters like you off as failures after you take the test a lot more." he laughed again, this time it sounded evil. "Of course _my_ version of the test is different than other peoples."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Oh you'll see," the man said mysteriously.

Prowl wasn't sure if he wanted to. A creepy feeling washed over him, as if he was about to embark on a journey of no return. "Wait, I thought only police officers could do this with somebody," he said, remembering something he heard.

"Well mostly," Archer replied. "But none of the old fuzz had time today." he leaned easily against the back of the seat. "So you have me."

"Oh." Prowl frowned at him. _What a wonderful turn of events. _"Is this part of your community service?"

The man gave him a look. "Now what would make you ask that?"

"Nothing." Prowl looked away, pretending to be busy with his seat belt. "I was just wondering." he strapped himself in. "Forget it."

The look the former Angry Archor gave him told him he wasn't going to do any such thing. _Great. _

"Really, forget it," he said quickly. "I was out of line."

"Hmm whatever." the man looked away from him. "Let's just get started. You're not the only blighter I need to take this test with today."

"Okay." Prowl did a quick memory check. Remembering everything Professor Sumdac had told him.

A minute later he was pulling onto the test track/parking lot.

"All right," Archer said, grinning evilly. "Let's get started."

* * *

Ultra Magnus was not happy when he heard the news. "I knew allowing Barricade to work in the stockade was a bad idea," he said out loud yet talking to himself at the same time. "He was way too receptive to Megatron's influence."

Jazz and Sentinel looked at each other. This was news to them. They both knew Barricade was a little strange but they never thought he'd do something like this, especially since he'd seemed like such a nice person. Jazz viewed him that way at least. Sentinel had the bad habit of not liking very many people, so it was hard to decide if he viewed him the same way Jazz did.

"What do you mean?" the white cyber ninja questioned.

"Barricade had an unhealthy interest in the things Megatron published," Magnus replied, leaning back in his chair. "Somehow he was able to gain access to forbidden files."

Jazz stared at him. This was news to him.

"You mean those articles Megatron used to send out over the Network before the beginning of the war?" Sentinel asked when the other Autobot didn't.

At one time in history Megatron hadn't been the ruler of the Decepticons. He'd merely been a somewhat delusional individual who wasn't happy with how the System worked. A lot of people felt that way at the time but things had gotten a bit better since then. Most of the unhappy campers were Decepticons who were either no longer on the planet or in the stockade.

"Yes," Magnus confirmed, nodding. "Those are the very ones."

"But how was he able to gain access?" the dark blue Prime wanted to know. "I thought all those works were destroyed."

"I can't answer that," the older robot replied somewhat evasively. "But somehow he was able to. I think he might have been _given_the files or the codes that accessed them.." When he saw the looks on their faces he changed the subject. "But that is not important. Finding Megatron and putting him back into custody is top priority."

"Do you have any idea where he might be right now?" Jazz ventured to ask.

"No," Magnus admitted. He stood up and paced. "I only know he's not on the planet. A ship with no identification was spotted near the Slums a few hours ago but before anyone could investigate, it pulled up and shot out of the atmosphere. I've come to believe that it was a Decepticon vessel." he looked out the window at the night sky. "If it was... Megatron could be anywhere."

_Not __**anywhere,**_Jazz couldn't help thinking. _Earth. _

* * *

Prowl's driving test was going very well. With the way the instructor had acted when he started he thought the man was up to something. Like he'd booby trapped the parking lot or something. So far nothing suspicious had happened. The whole test was a bore. He wouldn't have minded a little excitement.

As luck would have it he got his wish. He saw something flash out of the corner of his eye then the road in front of him exploded. He pulled sharply on the wheel, swerving to avoid the flying debris. "Primus!" he swore then noticed the look on Archer's face.

He looked gleeful. His smile was so big it nearly took up his entire face. Prowl knew right away that this was his doing.

"Are you crazy!?" he demanded. "Are you trying to get us killed?!"

"No," Archer replied, grinning at him. "Just adding a little inconvenience. It makes things interesting. Just pretend you're in Iraq and you're avoiding live road bombs."

Prowl yanked on the wheel once more, avoiding another explosion. He'd read about that war between the US and Irag that happened years ago. It didn't make him think of that at all. It made him think of a much _older_ war. "I'm here for a _diver's_ test," he informed the man in a tight voice. "I didn't ask to be drafted."

"That's what makes it so interesting." The man looked down at his clipboard. "Keeps things original."

Prowl gripped the steering wheel grimly. This was not what he expected. Professor Sumdac told him this part would be easy. Once he'd learned the basics he would be free and clear. _He obviously didn't know this loon would be doing it with me. Some piece of energon. _

Another bomb blew up on the road. He swerved to avoid it. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the the Angry Archer grinning like the Cheshire cat. He was obviously enjoying this even if Prowl wasn't. _He thinks I'm going to make a mistake, _he realized. _That's why he's smiling. He wants to tell me I am an unfit driver. How can anyone be given a passing grade with obstacles like this. No wonder everyone else who takes the test with him flunks. _He frowned, his eyes glued on the road ahead. _Well I'm not going to let it happen to me. He's not going to keep me from passing, exploding road or no exploding road._

That's when It happened. A strange electrical sensation shot down his arms. The feeling entered his hands then his fingers, making them tingle. _What? _Just then something else happened, a strange phenomena. He suddenly felt as if he _was _the car. Like he was seeing what the car was seeing. He was experienced in this form of thinking, though he didn't think he'd ever go through it again. _This feels familiar.. This feels __**right.**_

And that's when he realized, no _knew_, he would pass. _Sorry, Mr. Archer, but you're not going to be giving me a failing grade._

Auron Archer noticed him grinning. He was not used to seeing the students making that face. "What's that look for?" he demanded.

Prowl didn't even look at him as he said, in a strange metallic voice that was comforting to his own ears but weird to the other man's. "Nothing important. I just figured out something."

Archer eyed him suspiciously. "And what is that?"

"This is _easy_."

"Easy?"

"Hold on tight!" Prowl shot ahead, dodging the bombs as easily as using processor over matter. Now that he and the car were one, he wasn't having any trouble. He finished the rest of the course without any trouble, even the parallel parking.

By the time he parked in front of the building Archer was frowning. He didn't look the least bit happy. The car was in perfect condition, not one bomb had broken anything, not even one tire. Prowl let go of the steering wheel, the oneness feeling fading out as he did so. His hands then arms tingled then felt normal again. He looked at the man. "How did I do?"

* * *

"I can't believe he did that!" Sari exclaimed a short time later after Prowl was finished with the test. Professor Sumdac was driving them to the tower for lunch. "Who gave him that job anyway?"

"Calm down, Sari. It's not important," Prowl said, looking at the plastic card in his hand. He'd gotten his license but the picture on it made him look like he had two noses. Driver's license pictures were never flattering. "At least I passed."

"Yeah but you should complain," she told him, ticked off because he wasn't. "He could have _killed_ you."

"Forget about it," the cyber ninja said, lifting his head and looking at her face. Her mouth was pinched down and her inhumanly blue eyes flashed with indignation. She acted like _she _was the one who took the test and not him. "I'm just glad it's over."

"Well Captain Fanzone or whoever it was who gave him that job must have been off their rocker," she told him. "Are they _trying_ to get people killed?"

"I don't know," he replied. "But it doesn't matter. At least he's not tring to rob anything anymore."

"No, he's just trying to kill new drivers," she said, waving her hands around. "He almost killed you. You should complain. Tell his parole officer. Tell Fanzone! "

"I had everything under control," he told her, speaking calmly so she would take his cue. "I wasn't in any danger."

She wasn't about to let it go that easily. "How do you know that?" she demanded.

He looked away. "I just do." was his evasive answer. He didn't want to tell Sari about the weird thing that happened while he was driving. How would he be able to explain that he felt at one with the car? She might think he was crazy. Though she had weird abilities as well, ones that let her know what was wrong with machines, he wasn't sure she would be able to understand _this_. Now that the feeling was gone he wasn't even sure he believed what he'd done himself. It had felt so strange yet so _right_. _Like the car __**wanted**__ me to control it. _

The thought made him feel uncomfortable, though he knew he shouldn't. He used to be one of those vehicles. Why should controlling one feel wrong? He didn't understand it. It was even stranger than how he felt about his emotions. _Maybe I should talk to Ratchet about it, _he decided. _He might be able give me some answers. _

As it turned out he didn't talk to the medic about it. Not for a long time.

* * *

"Where do you think you're going?"

Jazz turned to face the speaker. Sentinel Prime came running up to him. Jazz felt a jolt of annoyance course through his frame. After the briefing with Ultra Magnus about what had happened with Barricade and Megatron they both had gone their separate ways. Each had things to think about.

Jazz was more worried about where Megatron had gone while Sentinel was worried about his own reputation and how much he was going to make Barricade pay for humiliating him. He seemed ready to go off guns blazing and bring the Decepticon Commander and the traitor back himself. That wasn't a wise idea.

Of course Jazz had a guess where Megatron might end up but he didn't want to tell anyone yet, even Ultra Magnes. He wanted to wait until he could prove that his theory was right. So he was heading to Earth.

The day Optimus and his crew had gone back to the planet he'd been there to see them off. He was also aware of Prowl's transformation, though he didn't have any ideas on how it happened either.

But that wasn't the issue here and he wasn't that worried about how the other ninja was doing in his new body.

Optimus and his crew were responsible for Megatron being taken into custody. If the Decepticon ever got loose Jazz felt that he would go after the ones accountable. That was Optimus team and even Professor Sumdac and his daughter. Megatron had so many people he blamed living on Earth that he would surely return to make them pay.

So that's where Jazz was heading. Not just to prove his theory right but to warn the Autobots stationed there in case he was. It would be a good idea to keep them informed. But of course there was no way he was going to tell Sentinel Prime that. The dark blue Elite Guard soldier would most likely have a fit, though it wasn't really any of his business.

"I'm going out," Jazz told him.

"Out?"

"Yeah, I figured I'd go home and chill out for awhile," he replied. "Since there's really nothing we can do about it until we get a fix on their destination."

"It wouldn't take so long if they let me look for him," Sentinel Prime grumbled. "I could have had them all back by now."

"Like you did in the apartment?" Jazz asked, his voice more scathing than he intended. He didn't usually talk that way but Sentinel was getting on his nerves. The longer he was delayed him the more chance there was that Megatron would get to Earth first and bring the rain. When Sentinel gave him a look he put up his hands as if in surrender. "Sorry. I didn't mean to yank your chain."

"You're yanking more than that. You're just as bad as_ they _are." he pointed back to the building. "You don't have any faith in me either."

"Well maybe if you didn't act as if you knew everything all the time you wouldn't have that issue," Jazz replied, his voice never changing pitch. "I'm sure they would love for you to prove yourself, but if you did it differently...."

Sentinel swung around. "Why am I talking to you anyway," he grumbled. "You don't get it either."

_I get something. I get that you're not as hip as you think you are. _But he didn't say that either.

Instead he just slunk off quietly, while Sentinel still had his back to him. He was ranting again so he wouldn't notice his audience had left until he was finished.

Now all Jazz had to worry about was getting to the space bridge before he was seen by somebody else who would demand to know what he was doing or care. The space bridges were still offline and if they discovered he was using them without authorization he'd be in big trouble.

* * *

Prowl and Sari had lunch at the tower. Professor Sumdac wasn't able to join them because he said he had something he needed to get finished. Neither were too disappointed. The inventor was always busy, though he did find time to spend with his daughter. Prowl was a little relieved. He'd wanted to spend some time alone with Sari, though he wasn't sure why.

"So what do you plan on doing now?" Sari asked him as they ate their sandwiches.

"What do you mean?"

"Well you got your license so now you don't need to get a lift from anybody," she explained, raising her hands, one holding a sandwich the other empty. "When you get your own vehicle what do you want to do?"

"I don't know yet," he admitted. "I don't even have a car or anything and I can't afford to buy one." he looked out the window. "After the accident with your father's car I don't think he'll be willing to finish the motorcycle he planned to build for me."

Sari was tempted to tell her friend that Professor Sumdac was indeed going to complete the vehicle but decided against it. Surprises never hurt anyone. _I just hope he doesn't get mad at me for not telling him when Dad brings it to him. _

"Hey!" she said, changing the subject. "Why don't we head back to the park and see how Carly's cats are doing?"

"All right," he agreed, without pause. He got up off the couch, collecting their plates and taking them into the kitchen. "I just hope nothing happened to them. It rained last night and you know how cats feel about water."

They had just stepped onto the parking lot when a voice hailed them from the other side of the tower. Curious the two techno organic humans rounded the circular building and came upon Professor Sumdac. "I figured you might want to ride to the park instead of walking." the man said as he came toward them.

He was holding onto something, something big and familiar looking. Prowl instantly knew what it was. A motorcycle. A Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle painted the same colors as his vehicle mode had been. "What the?" he began.

Sari grinned at him. "Dad wanted it to be a surprise," she told him. "That's why I didn't tell you."

The cyber ninja walked over to the man and the machine. Professor Sumdac smiled at him. "I hope its to your liking."

Prowl knelt down and ran his hands over the machine, familiarizing himself with it. As he touched it he felt that strange oneness wash over him like he'd felt in the car earlier. This vehicle became a part of him and he knew everything about it, down to the smallest screw. After a few minutes had gone by he looked up at the man. "It's perfect," he told him. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me until you've driven it," Isaac said. "I won't know until then whether it's in perfect working order."

Prowl was tempted to let him know that it was. When his mind had merged with the machine he'd seen everything about it, even problems, similar to Sari's machine diagnostic abilities. There wasn't anything that needed fixing. But he refrained from telling him that. Instead he chose to humor the man. "I'll give it a test drive."

He climbed onto the bike and grabbed the handlebars. Professor Sumdac handed him the keys which he instantly put into the key slot then gave them a turn. The motor came to life with a purr. Prowl leaned over and kicked the bike into gear.

As soon as his foot hit it his mind once again merged with the machine. He saw what it saw. Instantly the bike shot away. Prowl grasped the handlebars, his mind telling the machine what to do and where to go. He rounded the parking lot a few times then returned to the Sumdacs. He stopped right in front of them and turned off the motor.

The unity between man and machine broke off and he looked at Professor Sumdac. "It's working just fine," he told him. "You did an excellent job, Professor."

The man looked relieved to hear that.

Sari's face held a different expression. She was eyeing him suspiciously, as if she knew what he he had done. As if she knew about his abilities. He didn't see how she could. It wasn't _that _obvious, was it?

For a moment it looked like she was going to say something but then she seemed to change her mind and walked over to the bike. He felt her climb on, and wrap her arms around his waist, her chest resting gently against his back. Her touch sent a different kind of jolt through him. One not unpleasant. "We'll be back in a few hours, Dad," she told her father.

He nodded. "Just make sure you're back before eleven!" he called as they drove out of the parking lot and onto the strip.

"Don't worry!" Prowl called back. "I'll be sure you have her back by ten thirty at the latest!"

_He's so considerate, _the inventor thought to himself as they drove away. _Too bad he's nothing more than a friend. _

_A/N_

_I like the Angry Archer. I really do. He's fun. I have no idea what people do to get their license so I guessed. My mother said they were police officers but on TV shows it's a guy in a suit with a clipboard. Minor note: One of Prowl's abilities enables him to control vehicles with his mind just by touching them. _

_For those of you who told me what the supervisor person is called thank you very much. _


	14. Chapter 14

* * *

CHAPTER 14

"Is there something you're not telling me?" Sari spoke up a few minutes later as the two techno organics rode Prowl's bike through the city.

Until then she'd lapsed into a thoughtful silence. Now she felt it was time to bring up what was bothering her. He might think she hadn't seen what he'd done but she wasn't stupid. The instant he'd laid his hand on the bike's handlebars she'd seen the blue glow in his hands.

She'd forestalled asking earlier because she thought it might have been her imagination. Now, after thinking about it, she was going to make sure it wasn't.

"No," he answered a little evasively. "Why?"

"Oh no reason," she said, wondering why he was lying. "I just noticed that when you got on the bike to test it out it moved rather smoothly for a first time rider."

"I'm not a first time rider," he pointed out. "I used to _transform_ into a motorcycle."

"Being one in a past life and riding one now are two different things," she told him. "Like having a human hologram doesn't make you human. Even though you learned how to drive, riding a motorcycle is a little different than driving a car. You should have had some trouble."

"But I didn't." and this time she noticed his voice sounded strange. Robotic. Like it did when he was a machine. "Prowl?"

"What?'

"Why do you sound like a robot?"

"Huh?"

"You sound like you did when you were full Cybertronian," she explained. "Your voice is all metallic and echoy."

Yikes! "I uh..." he stalled.

She gave him a look. "Okay, what abilities do you have?" she demanded. "and don't lie to me. Your voice is a dead give away."

He sighed. He loosened his grip on the handlebars slightly and the link between him and the machine faded out. "All right," he said, his voice more human now. "I might as well tell you. When I'm driving my mind becomes one with the vehicle."

"What do you mean?"

"I can see what it see," he explained. "I can control everything it does just by thinking."

She stared at him, not sure how to react. It sounded similar to her ability to diagnose problems with machines. "How long have you had this?" she asked. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I only found out I had the ability this morning," he told her, his eyes focused on the road ahead. For some reason he couldn't meet her eyes, even for a second. "When the Angry Archer started activating bombs on the road the ability kind of awakened. I felt this weird electric jolt in my arms and the next thing I knew I was in complete control of the vehicle." he shrugged. "It was strange. I didn't want to tell you because I thought you might-"

"I might what?"

Prowl shook his head. "I don't know," he admitted. "I just did."

"Prowl," she said, releasing her hold on his waist so she could put a hand on his shoulder. "You could have told me. I wouldn't have thought you were weird. If _I_ can get abilities _you_ can to. You didn't have to hide it."

He didn't look at her but she could feel his smile anyway. "Thanks."

Just then a white and black car swerved into their lane. Prowl yanked hard on the handlebars to avoid running into. The bike skidded off the road and fell into the ravine. Sari tightened her grip on Prowl's waist to keep herself from falling off. The bike didn't swerve or fall over. Prowl regained the link and mentally gained control of it. That still didn't keep them from nearly being thrown, but he held on tight which meant Sari did to and rode it out. The bike stopped at the grassy bottom, upright. Both riders were uninjured.

"Sari, are you all right?" he asked.

"I think so," she said, peeking over his shoulder.

"What in Cybertron was that about?" he gasped, trying to catch his breath. "Was that guy crazy?"

He noticed the car had stopped. He climbed off the bike and walked up the shallow hill toward it, thinking he'd give the lunatic a piece of his mind.

"Hey you!" he shouted at the car. "What do you think you're doing, cutting me off like that? You could have killed us! There was plenty of space you could have taken! You didn't have to invade ours!"

For a few seconds nothing happened. The driver remained in his vehicle and Prowl began considering smacking the windshield to get this loon's attention. He was about to do just that when the car started to move. Not toward him or away but _up_.

He watched as if changed size and shape before his eyes. In a matter of seconds he no longer faced a white sports car but Jazz, his easy going cyber ninja friend. "Jazz!" he exclaimed, taking a step back. "What are you doing here?"

The white and black cyber ninja looked down at him, smiling lightly. "I'm still not used to the new body of yours, man," he commented. "But I must admit, it looks sweet on you."

Prowl just stared at him. Jazz always talked weird to begin with but that comment felt a little inappropriate.

"Hi Jazz," Sari said, coming up behind him. She repeated Prowl's question. "What are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to Optimus," he answered, turning serious.

"About what?" she wanted to know.

"I don't want to discuss it out in the open," he replied. "Why don't we head back to the plant and I'll explain there?"

Prowl nodded. "All right," he agreed. "Just give me a minute to get my motorcycle out of the ditch." he turned around and began to head down the grassy slope.

A shadow passed over him as Jazz walked past him. The white cyber ninja climbed down the ravine and stood over the bike. He reached down and lifted it up and carried it easily out of the ditch. When he reached the street he set it down gently on the asphalt. "There ya go, man," he said, dusting the seats off. "as good as new."

"Thanks," Prowl said, walking over to the bike. He inspected it for damage then, upon finding none, climbed into the seat. He looked at Sari. "Hop on."

She held back "Uh..," the girl said, looking at the white cyber ninja. "I think I'll let Jazz take me back."

"Oh," he said, keeping the disappointment out of his voice. "All right." He understood why she didn't want to gt back on. Their near death experience was still on her mind.

Jazz went back into vehicle mode and Sari climbed in. He then pulled back onto the road and drove off. Prowl followed on his bike. When he looked over his shoulder to make sure no other cars were going to cut him off he noticed a lemon yellow compact tailing him but trying to look like it was. _Bumblebee, _he thought recognizing the vehicle right away. _I wonder how long he's been following me?_

* * *

"Megatron was broken out of the stockade?!" Optimus face mirrored the same disbelief on the others faces at the news. "How did that happen?"

Jazz frowned. He didn't want to tell him that but he had to. "Barricade broke him out," he answered.

"Barricade?" Now Primes disbelief was reflected on Prowl's face who was standing on one of the plants machines so he didn't have to strain his neck looking up at them. The cyber ninja also knew the Autobot mentioned. They'd gone on a mission together. "Why would Barricade do such a thing?"

"We are not sure but our theory is Megatron was able to convince him that what the Autobots was doing was wrong," Jazz explained. "From what I gather from the files taken from Barricade's computer the Decepticon was able to contact him even from the confines of the stockade and he persuaded him that if his spark was extinguished, free thinking would be banned."

Ratchet commented. "But that doesn't even make sense."

Jazz shook his head. "Just repeating what I was told," he answered, raising his hands, palms up. A helpless gesture. "Megatron said that they were going to make him an example for anyone who said anything against the Autobot government. He made himself out to be some kind of freedom crusader who only had the people's rights on his mind." Jazz laughed a little bitterly. "I don't see how anyone could habe believed such crap."

"And yet Barricade did," Optimus pointed out. His frown deepened. "Quite easily from what you've insinuated."

"Yes, but he was always a little rebellious even when he was in the academy," Jazz replied, remembering something. " Ultra Magnus said he somehow gained access to Megatrons early works and read them."

Optimus blinked. "But I thought those files were destroyed."

'They were but... I don't know." the white cyber ninja shook his head. "But that's not important right now. What is important is Megatron is free. He's no longer on Cybertron."

"But what does that have to do with us?" Prowl wanted to know.

The white and black cyber ninja looked down at him. "I have a theory," he answered. "If I'm proved right it have everything to do with you."

"What is it?" Ratchet spoke up.

Jazz lifted his head and met the medic's optics. "I think he's going to come here," he replied.

That statement surprised everyone. "Why would Megatron come to Earth?" Bulkhead questioned.

The cyber ninja looked at him as if he should already know the answer. It was obvious. "It's like this," he began. "You were the ones responsible for him being arrested in the first place," he paced. "Thanks to you his plans for taking over Cybertron were stopped. He lost everything because you were able to stop him. His weapons and his soldiers. He's going to blame you all with good reason. If he _does _come back here he'll make sure the ones who humiliated him pay." now he looked at Optimus. "Mostly you, Optimus. You and maybe Prowl."

With this statement everyone looked at the techno organic cyber ninja.

"_Me_?" he said, looking surprised. "_Why _would he blame me?"

"Because from what I've heard you messed up his plans from the very beginning," Jazz told him. "First you cut off his arm. He is still sore about that. No offense to you guys but I think he blames Prowl the most. He doesn't like cyber ninjas. He considers us more dangerous than the Elite Guard."

"But he thinks I'm dead," the other cyber ninja protested, bringing up that one important detail. "He was there when they brought my shell back to Cybertron."

"True," Jazz consented, resting his fist on his chin thoughtfully. "But if he sees you and figures out that you are still alive and human... I mean half human....."

"He'll come after him," Sari finished, coming to the correct conclusion. "But there's _no way_ he will figure that out. Most of us had to be convinced.... well most of us except Captain Fanzone that is. If it was hard for us I know it'll be next to impossible for him. He doesn't know Prowl very well."

"But he does think he's dangerous, girl," Jazz reminded her. "You are right, though. He doesn't know Prowl very well so he probably won't figure out that he's human now."

Prowl didn't comment on that. He didn't want to contradict Jazz but he felt the other cyber ninja was wrong. Megatron wasn't an idiot. He was almost as smart as Master Yoketron. Prowl felt that if Megatron ever saw him as he was now that he would be able to figure it out immediately. _I wouldn't doubt that. _

* * *

Barricade became aware of Oil Slick's presence after he stepped out of the cargo hold. The ship was full of energon cubes so there was no worrying about running out of fuel. And he re-emerged in the hall he spotted the cyber ninja further down the hall, his arms folded and his back leaned against the wall. Even with the bulb covering his head Barricade could tell that he was looking in his direction. _What does he expect to accomplish following me around like this? _

He wanted to confront him but thought better of it. He knew why Oil Slick was doing this. He didn't need to ask him.

_But he's not going to find anything to incriminate me, _he thought, turning away and walking down the hall. _I'm smarter than he thinks I am._

* * *

Megatron faced the windshield in the control room his arms folded across his chest and his legs were slightly parted. His full attention was focused on the black star studded void of space. One of those stars held a life sustaining planet in its orbit. A planet full of nothing more than smart chimps outside of cages. Well not exactly _chimps_ but close enough. He didn't care what they were. It didn't really matter.

Humans weren't the real problem. He knew who else was currently calling the planet home. Four little Autobots as well as a few assorted Others. The Constructicons, the Dinobots, Soundwave, maybe even Blackarachnia and a certain Starscream clone named Slipstream. He was not the least bit aware of Wasp now Waspinator's new choice of residence.

An idea came to him. Maybe he could try to contact one of them. Preferably Soundwave if he had a full body again. Maybe he could have one of them spy on the Autobots until he got there.

But who should he contact?

He immediately ruled out the Constructicons. Those simple minded glitch heads only cared about oil. They wouldn't help him unless he agreed to give them some which he could not do. He could not afford to waste precious resources on a couple of micro chip brained Dinobots he didn't even consider. They were friends with the Autobots. Maybe he should just contact Soundwave but there was a problem to that as well. The blue robot that spoke without any emotion could never hold his shape for long. Even if he had nearly gained control of the Autobots at one time he'd been destroyed again.

Unless he could sneak around in his tiny form which he doubted.

_So Slipstream, _Megatron considered. Even if she was a mere clone of Starscream she didn't have all his qualities. Only a part of him made up her personality, though nobody knew which and she told them not to ask. He doubted it was the traitor part. She was too smart for that. _I don't know where she is but maybe I can try to find her anyway. _

He walked over to Strika who was at the controls. "From how far away can this ship's communication system pick up a frequency?"

"Pretty far," she replied.

"How?" he prompted, unsatisfied with a two worded answer. "From here to say Earth?"

"I don't know," she answered, shrugging her massive shoulders. "I never tried it." she looked over her shoulder. "Why?"

"Just do it," he ordered, not wanting to answer any questions. "It's not important why."

The large femme frowned and turned back to the control panel.

* * *

"Is there something wrong, Prowl?" Sari asked a short time later as the two techno organics headed out of the room. After Jazz had made his report the group had broken up because they all had things to do. Optimus and Jazz went off together, discussing a course of action, should Megatron actually come back to the planet.

If he did they had to be ready. They couldn't afford to be caught off guard.

Prowl looked at her, his expression troubled. He opened his mouth to explain then snapped it shut. He couldn't tell her, she might think he was being big headed or think he was giving Megatron too much credit. Honestly, was Megatron really smart enough to tell who Prowl was no matter what body he had? "It's nothing," he said finally, turning away from her.

"Are you sure?" she pressed.

_No! _he thought but didn't say. "Yes," he lied instead. "I'm just a little worried, that's all."

She sensed something in his voice. What was wrong? "About what Jazz said?" she questioned.

He nodded.

"I don't think we have anything to worry about," she told him, folding her arms. "I don't think Megatron will come back here. It's not even likely that he knows his way back here without using space bridges. Even if you guys _are_ responsible he's got other, more important, things he would be doing. He wants to take over Cybertron. Why should he bother coming after five insignificant transformers?"

"Because we're responsible for him being put into custody," he reminded her. "You know what Jazz said. He's right, know you. He won't let us get away with doing that to him."

She fell silent, digesting his words. She knew he was right, she'd only been trying help him feel better. "I know," she said finally. "I was only trying to... well I'm worried too. If he does come back here he might go after my dad. I don't want that to happen." she wrapped her arms around herself. "I don't know what I'd do if he-"

He sensed how upset she was and put a hand on her shoulder. "It's not going to happen," he said when she looked up at him. Until then he hadn't noticed he was taller than her by at least six inches. "If he does come here I won't let it happen. I won't let him do anything to your father."

"You promise?" she asked him, though she was wondering what he would do if Megatron did attack. He wasn't a powerful twenty foot robot anymore. He was like her but she doubted he had a battle mode, even if he _did_ have other abilities.. maybe...

He smiled slightly. "I promise."

That's when Sari did something unexpected. She stepped closer to him and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. He stared down at the girl, not sure what to do. "Uh Sari?"

"Don't let him hurt my dad," she said, her cheek rested on his chest. "Protect him if I can't."

"Well well what do we have here?"

Both Prowl and Sari jumped. They lifted their heads to find Bumblebee standing in the doorway with his arms folded. By the look on his face they both could tell that he wasn't happy with what he was seeing. "Bumblebee," Prowl said.

"Just what do you think you're doing?" the young Autobot demanded.

"Talking?" Prowl felt Sari's arms slip away as she put some distance between herself and the cyber ninja.

"Talking with your arms?" Bee said. He rolled his optics. "Do I _look_ stupid?"

"Bumblebee," Sari said defensively. "We were just hugging."

"I can _see_ that."

She folded her arms and gave him a look. She did not like his tone. "and why shouldn't we?" she demanded.

"It doesn't look right." he informed her. "I mean you and him doing something like that is kind of-"

"What? Is kind of what?"

"Inappropriate."

She burst out laughing. Bee made a face. "What's so funny?"

"Wow," the girl said, regaining control of herself. "That was unexpected." she looked up at him, suddenly serious. "Bumblebee I don't know what's gotten into you lately but it doesn't become you. You're being irrational. I don't even know why you're so jealous all of a sudden."

"I'm _not _jealous!" he insisted.

The girl cocked her head. "No? You could have fooled me." she walked over to him. "You don't have anything to be jealous about. It's not like we're _dating_ or anything."

Bee sputtered then fell silent. He thought for a moment then said. "But you and him have been spending so much time together without me." he looked away. "I feel left out."

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Bee," she said sincerely. "But you wouldn't really be able to help Prowl out in the things we're doing."

"I know," he said. "But couldn't you at least spend a little time with me?"

"Sure," she said. "We can do something right now."

"Really?" he sounded hopeful.

She smiled and nodded. "Sure."

He smiled. "Okay."

Sari looked over her shoulder at Prowl. "I'll see you later," she said to him. "I hope you don't mind."

He did a little but he didn't tell her that. Instead he said. "It's fine. I'll see you later."

* * *

After Bumblebee and Sari left the room to do something together Prowl turned away and headed down the hall to his own room. He stepped inside and sighed. He was alone. Just like always. The fact that Sari had gone with Bee bothered him though he knew it shouldn't. _Maybe I'm so used to her spending time with me that it feels out of place when she doesn't. _He shook his head. _No..._

He crossed the room and lay down on the dusty oriental rug covering the floor. He put his hands under his head and looked up at the leafy branches of the tree. Bits of sunlight peaked through gaps in the boughs like fairies. _It shouldn't bother me. I always spent time by myself. Besides I've got other things to worry about. More important than Sari going out and hanging with Bumblebee who is her best friend anyway. _

He reached up and took off his glasses. The world went blurry so he shut his eyes, his breathing beginning to deepen. _Megatron is on his way here. I know Jazz was only guessing but he usually is right about these things. If he thinks the Decepticon is on his way here he is. When he gets here we'll have to be ready. We will have to take care of him. But how? I hope he doesn't figure out what I am now. He might just use it to his advantage..._

He was sound asleep.

_A/N_

_Nwahaha! Pooh. This is one of those complicated chapters that want to play ring around the merry go round with my mind. I posted important parts in this but the random confusion started taking over. Maybe it just feels that way to me because I'm writing it. It'll probably make more sense to you, my readers. _


	15. Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15

"You really shouldn't be so upset about it."

Bumblebee looked over at Sari who sat on the branch of a tree. They had gone to the park after leaving the plant and were just chilling until they thought of something to do. Sari held an ice cream cone in her hand but was only periodically taking a lick. It was starting to melt, dripping down the cone and onto her hand. She didn't seem to notice. "Upset about what?" he asked her.

"About me and Prowl spending so much time together," she replied, looking him in the eye. She frowned disapprovingly. "I spend plenty of time with you. The fact that I'm hanging out with him shouldn't be a big deal."

He looked away. "I know."

"It's not like you spend all your time with me," she pointed out. "You guys always do stuff without me around."

"Well the things we do are dangerous," he told her.

She made a face. "Don't bring that up," she told him. "That has _nothing _to do with this."

"Hey you started it," he shot back defensively.

"Well I shouldn't have." she looked away. "You know what?"

"What?"

"The way you're acting about me and Prowl hanging out," she began. "It reminds me of the way all those possessive boyfriends on those documentaries on ABC act. You're all suspicious and stuff." she looked back at him, her blue eyes cold as ice cubes. "I don't _belong_ to you and you're _not_ my boyfriend."

"I didn't say you _were_."

"Then stop acting like it!" she snapped, her voice so loud it made him jump. "I don't even know why you would even_ think _such a thing."

He stared at her, taken aback by her words. "I wasn't," he told her.

"Then why are you doing it?"

"I feel left out," he told her. "I feel like you don't want me around anymore. Like Prowl's your new best friend and I'm just a nuisance."

Now her face softened. So _that_ was it. "You know that's not true, Bumblebee," she said, reaching over and putting a hand on his shoulder. "I told you why Prowl and I have been spending so much time together. I didn't mean to ignore you."

"It's all right," he told her. "I shouldn't have been acting the way I've been either." he met her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too," she said. She pushed herself off the branch and landed on the grass. "Why don't we go to the archade and play some Dance Dance Revolution? I'll supply the quarters."

Bee smiled. "Sure," he agreed enthusiastically. "I bet I can beat you."

She smiled back. "I bet you can't."

"I'll race you!" Bee challenged.

"You're on!"

Bee took off. "I'll see you there!" he called over his shoulder.

"Hey!" she shouted, running after him. "No fair head start!"

* * *

Prowl lay floating in a soft white light. A faint swishing sound stroked his eardrums like delicate fingers. He knew right away that he wasn't back in the Well even though he'd only been there for a very short time. It was different here.. He was all alone but this wasn't the Pit either because nobody was wailing.

He'd never been in a place like this before.

"Hello?" he called, searching for any other entities.

No answers. He was alone. Alone in a white world.

_What is this place?_

Suddenly the whiteness faded and was replaced by... chaos. Fragmented images played before his eyes so fast he could not keep up with them. He closed his eyes, but could not shut out the images. They were in his head. In his head and printing themselves in his mind's eye like a movie projector set on fast forward.

He put his hands on his eyes as if that would help. It did little good. The images coursed through his mind's eye like a runaway train one after another. Over and Over. Faster and Faster.

He could only make out a few of the images. Pictures of Cybertron. Pictures of his friends. Pictures of himself, robot and human... Pictures of Megatron. Another picture came after the ones of the Decepticon but before he could figure out what it was all the images blanked out. Now his mind was calm again. Nothing there but his own rational thoughts. He couldn't try to process what he saw because his mind had gone blank and he could not remember them.

He sighed and opened his eyes only to find himself staring up into the burning red optics of Megatron himself. "So you are still around," the Decepticon said. He was frowning. He was annoyed. Prowl could tell this was not what he'd expected at all. "Still here to make a nuisance of yourself. Even with a new body." Megatron lifted his hand and brought it down upon the ninja. "I cannot allow you to get in my way again. Go back to the Well where you belong."

* * *

Prowl sat up, gasping for air, his hands wrapped around his neck as if he'd been choking. He looked around frantically, his eyes searching for any sign of Megatron.

But there was no Decepticon Supreme Commander. Only the quiet of his room. He let that sink in then flopped onto his back still breathing heavily. "Only a dream," he told himself, his eyes focusing on the blurry world. The sun had moved. He'd been asleep for quite awhile. "It was only a dream."

He reached down at his side and picked up his glasses, setting them in their place on the bridge of his nose. The world went into sharp focus. For a moment he lay there, staring up at the trees, trying to remember as much about the dream as possible. The details proved elusive. The more he tried to grasp them the more they fluttered away. The only clear memory that stayed with him was the one of Megatron's hand coming down to crush him.

Did that mean he would die again?

_That won't happen. I won't __**let **__it happen._

But could he really stop it if it happened?

He sighed and sat back up, becoming aware of the sound of footsteps in the hall. They were louder than usual and seemed hurried. Curious he stood and headed over to the door, pulling the wooden blinds back so he could see out. Nothing. Whoever was running around was doing it further down the hall.

_What's going on, _he wondered, stepping out of the room and heading toward the noise.

* * *

Slipstream was the one Starscream clone that had managed to avoid being arrested. She was also the only one smart enough to stay in hiding until the coast was clear. After making that mistake the sent Optimus Prime with his experimental flying gear into the river she'd been even more careful. She'd waited until dark and when the Autobots had left the planet before going out again.

The last thing she needed was to be arrested for being "born" with the Decepticon insignia plastered on her wing struts. It wasn't like she'd had a choice.

That was when she had come upon the Corpse. It lay all dead, gray, and broken on the street like a toy somebody forgot to pick up. Even without the tell tale colors she knew right away who the body belonged to.

Of course she couldn't help landing and giving that thing a good contempt filled kick. Stupid, sorry excuse for a seeker. Why couldn't he have at least chosen a different part of himself to make her? Most of the time she felt like a spring being pushed down too far. One day she'd pop and take out all the stupid people directly or indirectly responsible for it.

Human females might call it PMS.

But thanks to Starscream she seemed to be PMSing all the time.

So after she'd given her "father" a few more licks for good measure she'd lifted her guns and nearly blown the Corpse to scrap iron. But then, for reasons unknown to herself, she'd changed her mind and instead picked up the stupid thing and flew off with it. It might make a good punching bag.

It now lay stretched out on a table in the remains of the _Nemesis _that nobody had bothered to take off the moon. It had once been the Decepticon's warship then Starscream's base. Now it was _her _base and she rather liked it, though her only companion was that spark forsaken Corpse. Why didn't she just incinerate that blasted thing already?

Ah frag it. It didn't matter. Corpses couldn't get on people's nerves anyway. Well not robot ones. Organics ones.. where the signs of death that stank after awhile. Robot corpses just rusted, unless they were left in a vacuum... or incinerated like some of the old Great War Heroes.

At the moment it lay where she put it, ignored. She actually had found some use for it. Whenever she felt like ranting she'd rant at it, blaming it for all her rotten luck. Since it couldn't talk back it was a little boring.

She sat at the control console, staring up at the blank screen. She didn't know what she was expecting to see, it wasn't like anyone cared enough to contact her. But it had become a habit and habits were hard to break.

Her optics focused on the blank eye of the screen for a few moments longer then she sighed and turned away. _Oh brother. Just forget about it. You're not important enough to contact. They probably forgot you even exist. If they cared about you at all they would have tried to communicate sooner. Even when those stupid purple giants were attacking the city they didn't bother contacting you. They don't care if you're online anyway._

_Ah what do I care? _

She got up and walked through the ship feeling bored. So bored she was tempted to fly to earth and cause some mayhem just to get some kind of reaction but decided against it. It would be unwise. There were four Autobots on that planet who would love to take out a Decepticon. She had no intention of being arrested and jail would drive her crazy. There were too many idiots in jail.

_I won't be one of them. _

She walked around the ship aimlessly. It seemed so big without more transformers around. Even the remaining protoforms were gone. All she had to talk to were spare parts and that slaggin' corpse.

She was just re-entering the control room when she heard a strange sound. Like static. Her optics immediately locked onto the computer screen. Something was there! A face. She recognized that face.

"Megatron."

* * *

Prowl rushed into the living room area expecting some kind of trouble. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

The Autobot looked down at him. "No," Optimus said. "Why?"

"I.. well... I heard a lot of noise out here and I thought-" he noticed they were all giving him funny looks. "What?"

"What noise?"

"Running," he explained. "It sounded like you were in a hurry."

"Oh." Jazz gave him a slightly embarrassed smile. "That was me. I was going to ask you something but I got a call from Cybertron. I have to go back. Somebody saw me going through the space bridge and told Ultra Magnus." he shrugged. "I'm gonna be in such hot water when I get back. I wasn't supposed to come here."

"Oh." Now Prowl felt stupid. Why had he thought soemthing was wrong anyway. Maybe it was the dream he'd had or he was just so used to trouble that he unconsciously expected it. "That is all?"

Jazz nodded. "Sorry." he looked at Optimus now. "I guess we should be leaving?"

"_We_?"

"Yeah, Ultra Magnus wants to talk to me," Optimus explained. "I have to go with him."

"Oh..." _But why? Why does he need to speak with you? _Prowl didn't ask. Something told him he wouldn't get an answer.

Optimus looked at Jazz. "I guess we shouldn't keep them waiting."

The white cyber ninja nodded. "Sentinel is already trippin'."

A few minutes later the two Autobots left. Prowl turned to Ratchet. "Is Optimus being called back to Cybertron because of me?" he asked.

"No," the medic replied. "Why would you think that?"

"I don't know," Prowl said. "When we left Cybertron it wasn't exactly on good terms."

"If I remember correctly _you're_ the one who is responsible for that," Bulkhead spoke up. "If you hadn't insulted Sentinel with all that earth profanity."

"He deserved it," Prowl said in a pouty voice. "I was tired of taking all that junk from him. Just because he's a Prime doesn't give him the right to insult me."

"Prowl!" Ratchet voice made him jump. He looked at the medic. "What?"

"Maybe if you hadn't reacted the way you had you wouldn't have anything to feel guilty about now," he replied, folding his arms. "But this still doesn't have anything to do with you so stop worrying about it."

"What _is_ it about then?"

The two robots looked at each other. Prowl thought he saw some kind of silent message pass between them. The look gave him a funny feeling. _What is this? Why won't they tell me? _

"Prowl," Ratchet said, looking down at him. "Why don't you take out the motorcycle Professor Sumdac gave you and go for a drive?"

"Why?" Prowl wanted to know.

"I just think you should," the medic answered. "Some fresh air would do you good."

Now he knew something was up and he thought he knew exactly what it was. _They don't think I should know, _he thought. _They're treating me like we used to treat Sari. It's not my business anymore now that I'm not a machine. _He folded his arms and glared over the top of his glasses at them both. "Fine," he said, his voice betraying his agitation. "I'll do that. But let me just say one thing before I do." both looked at him, giving him their full attention. "If you're going to start hiding things from me now that I'm not like you anymore I'm not going to just sit by and allow it." he pointed in their faces. "Whatever it is I will find out, you know I will. I always have my ways."

Then he turned and stomped off to the parking lot where his bike was parked. Once he was outside he unchained his bike and climbed on, starting the motor and shooting out of the parking lot.

* * *

"You might as well show yourself," Barricade spoke up, turning around so he could glare at the doorway. "I know you're there Oil Slick."

The Decepticon cyber ninja stepped into the doorway. "Very perceptive of you," he commented.

"What do you want?" the Autobot traitor demanded, folding his arms and shooting the slightly smaller robot an icy glare. He could accomplish this better than Oil Slick who had red optics.

"I don't want anything from you," the cyber ninja replied, mirroring the other robots gesture. "I'm just keeping an eye on you."

"There is no need," Barricade informed him. "I already told you I don't intend to double cross Megatron or any of you."

"You might say that but it doesn't make it true." the cyber ninja pulled something out of nowhere. A canister full of a glowing green liquid. "Lies come just as easily to Autobots than they do for Decepticons. I'm not going to take your word for it."

"I don't care," the police-bot retorted. "I don't have to prove anything to you."

"That's right, you _don't_," the other bot conceded, throwing the canister into the air then catching it. "I'm not the one who you have to worry about." he smirked. "But I _am_the one who will deal with you if I find out you lied first." he deactivated the glass bulb covering his head and brought the canister to his mouth, biting down on the top. "I'm about as forgiving as Megatron is. I'm sure you know about Starscream."

Barricade said nothing. He knew very little about Starscream. "He was the Decepticon Second in Command," he said.

"Not anymore," the ninja informed him. "Once Megatron found out Starscream was playing a totally different game he took care of him." he laughed. "That's why he's not around anymore."

Barricade's optics narrowed. "So what are you saying?" he asked, clenching his fists. "That if I play the same game as Starscream you're going to dispose of me before Megatron can?"

Oil Slick smiled, pleased. "You're finally learning."

The former Autobot laughed. "You kill me?" The he drew his gun and aimed it at Oil Slick. "I don't think so. Maybe you should be worried about yourself. I would not hesitate to terminate you just as easily as you would about me."

Oil Slick stared at him with a bored expression. "Go ahead," he finally challenged. "If you pull that trigger. It will be the last thing you ever do."

Barricade sneered. "You don't scare me, bubblehead."

"No?" The cyber ninja dug his teeth into the top of the canister and yanked off the top. "Allow me to prove you wrong."

Then, before Barricade could stop him, he threw it, reactivating glass bulb as he did so.

* * *

The drive _did _Prowl some good. With the sensation of fresh air blowing in his face, his temper cooled and he started feeling like himself again. He gripped and re-gripped the handlebars, that feeling of unity with the machine coursing through his whole body but not as strong as before. He was getting the hang of it now, not letting the feeling take up too much of himself. He had to be careful. He didn't want to wind up stuck that way.

The road was straight in this part of the city and seemed to go on forever. He was nearly tempted to go with it but knew better. There was still plenty to do here even if his comrades didn't think he should know things now that he was a human... sort of human.

_It probably wasn't that important anyway. _

He spotted a health food store on the next block and turned the bike, heading toward the sidewalk. When he was right in front of the store he parked the bike and climbed off. Just as he stepped onto the sidewalk a large white stretch limo pulled into the parking space in front of him. When it backed up the rear bumper smashed into the bike, knocking it over.

"Hey!" the cyber ninja yelled, indignant. "Watch it!"

The back door opened and somebody stepped out. A dark skinned man in a white business suit. Prowl recognized the man right away. The man looked right at him, a haughty air about him. "_Excuse_ me?" he demanded.

"You heard me," Prowl said. He pointed to his bike. "Your driver barrelled right into my bike."

The man looked where he was pointing. "Well maybe you should have been watching where you were going," he retorted.

"Me watch where _I'm _going?" the cyber ninja echoed, his face beginning to grow hot. "I parked here first, Mister Powell. _You_ backed into _me_."

"I think you're mistaken," the black man informed him, not the least bit surprised that the other man knew his name. "If you had parked here first we would have seen you but we didn't which means you ran into my car."

Prowl glared at him, knowing he wouldn't win like this. The man smirked then walked past him. "I hope you have insurance," he told him, "Otherwise you're paying to get that dent removed."

Prowl watched the man walked into the store then looked back at the car. He walked over to his bike and stood it up, noticing no harm had been done. It was still in one piece and had no dents or dings. Relieved, him moved the bike away and also went into the store.

A few minutes later he came out empty handed. Most of the food in the store had either really weird names he never heard of or they cost too much. He shouldn't have been surprised. That's usually how it was in heath food places.

The clunk of metal on metal brought him out of his thoughts. His eyes zeroed in on his motorcycle that had once again been smacked into by Powell's limo. He glared at the black man who sat in the back seat smirking.

That did it. He'd had enough of this guy. It was bad enough what he'd done to Sari but now he was harassing a (to him) total stranger?! Unacceptable!

Prowl stalked over to the car which was parked at an angle as the diver waited for space to pull out. Before he could think of the consequences he raised his foot and gave the car a good, hard kick. The vehicle sprung into the air like a jumping bean then slammed back onto the pavement, bouncing Powell out of his seat and making him hit his head on the car roof.. The cyber ninja watched as the car fell apart before his very eyes, starting with the wheels, then the doors, after that the motor made a weird sound and the hood and trunk flaps broke off.

When all this was over Powell found himself sitting in the shell of his expensive limo. Hw stared open mouthed at Prowl whose eyes flickered strangely then returned to normal blue. "What did you do?" the man demanded.

"I.. I'm sorry," Prowl apologized, realizing he'd just gotten himself into trouble again. "I didn't mean to do that."

"Didn't _mean _to?!" The man climbed out of the car and stalked toward him. "You did that on purpose," he snapped, pointing his finger into the cyber ninja's face. "I don't know how but I know it was deliberate."

"It was not," Prowl protested looking down at the man who was four inches shorter than himself. Why was he so much taller than everyone anyway? "All I did was give it a kick. How was I supposed to know that would happen?"

"You shouldn't have been kicking it to begin with!" Powell exploded. "I should have you arrested! How dare you!"

"I am sorry," the cyber ninja said, his voice beginning to sound strained. He was beginning to lose him temper again, though he was making an effort to control it.

"I doubt that," the man poked him in the face, knocking his glasses askew. "Punks like you are never sorry for destroying older peoples property."

_If only you knew my true age. _Prowl was getting sick of this jerk poking him. He reached up and grabbed the man's wrist, squeezing hard. "I would advice against touching me further," he told him. "If you want to keep your hand."

Powell gaped at him in surprise. This wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting. "You're _threatening_ me now!?"

Prowl's patience had run out. Once again he reacted without thinking. One minute Powell was standing with both feet firmly on the ground the next he was sprawled on the cracked pavement with the cyber ninja standing over him. "I don't threaten," he told him, his face in shadow and his eyes glowing. "I_ never _threaten. This was your own fault not mine."

"I.. you... I'm going to have you arrested for assault!" Powell screamed.

"Go right ahead," Prowl said his voice showing no emotion. "But I don't think anyone will believe you. Not after all the stuff you've done."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

But the cyber ninja was through with talking. He turned away from the man and walked over to bike bike. He stood it up and climbed on. He started the motor and pulled out into the street, racing away from Powell and his ruined limo. He did not look back once.

_A/N_

_Slipstream contributes to the plot. Don't worry about it. The guy deserved what he got. He was always a royal douchebag._


	16. Chapter 16

**Lol so far Prowl has two abilities. Unity with machines and... a really powerful kick. Prowl Kick Nojitsu!**

CHAPTER 16

"I can't believe you did that!" Sari exclaimed, shooting Prowl a look. She and Bumblebee had returned to the plant the same time Prowl had pulled into the parking lot. The girl had noticed he looked upset and asked what was wrong. He'd taken her aside and explained what had happened, not wanting Bumblebee to overhear. "If he reports this Fanzone will arrest you this time."

"I wasn't _my _fault," he protested, though he knew deep down it was. "If he hadn't smashed into my bike then acted all smug about it this never would have happened."

"You shouldn't have lost your temper," she shot back, folding her arms and looking him in the eye. "What is the matter with you lately? Why do you keep on doing things without thinking?"

"I don't know," he retorted, mirroring the gesture. "I try to control it but it's not so easy anymore."

She sighed. "It would help if you didn't encounter so many people we've had bad run ins with," she admitted. "Powell's still been giving Dad some trouble. Lucky for you he didn't figure out who you were."

"Why should he care anyway?"

"Trust me. He would."

There was a short silence then Prowl asked. "Do you think I should apologize?"

She looked at him for a moment. She wasn't used to seeing Prowl look uncertain about something. He always seemed to know exactly what to do. _I guess his new body changed him more than we thought. _

"No," she said without hesitating. She paced in front of him. "You already did that. If he didn't believe you before he won't now. Just don't worry about it. Captain Fanzone doesn't like him anyway. He'll most likely think the man deserved it."

"I hope so." he looked away, his hands kneading the sofa cushions.

Sari realized he needed a distraction. Knowing him he'd dwell about on what happened and lose sleep or something like that. He might even go and have himself put in jail just because he thought he should take responsibility for his actions. They couldn't have that, not with the possibility of Megatron coming back. "Hey," she said, putting a hand on his knee. "Why don't we do something? Get our minds off our problems for awhile."

"How?" he asked, looking up at her.

"Let's go to the park," she suggested. "We have to check on those kittens anyway."

He nodded, ready for a distraction. "Think we should ask Bumblebee along?"

The girl shook her head. "Don't worry about him," she said, taking his hand and pulling him up. "I had a talk with him. Every thing's okay now."

"All right," he agreed a little reluctantly. "But let's drive there this time."

Sari hadn't really gotten to ride with Prowl on his bike because Jazz had interrupted it. She had been waiting for a chance to try it out again. "Fine with me."

* * *

"You have some nerve showing your deserting face around me," Slipstream snapped, glaring at the Decepticon Commander. Most of his frame was hidden in shadow as if he was trying to hide it. He didn't need to, she already knew what he looked like and the fact that he was trying to be mysterious only irritated her further. "If you're thinking of double crossing me like you did during that Space Bridge thing you can just cut this connection right now."

Megatron frowned. It was obvious he did not expect this kind of greeting from her. But what did he hope for? Her to be happy as a clam to be grazed by the very sight of him?

"I did not double cross you, my dear clone," he said scathingly. She glared at him, not happy that he'd pointed out what she really was. He made it an insult. "I contacted you because I need you to do something for me."

She put her hands on her hips. "Yeah, like what?" she demanded. _This had better be worth my time._

"Surveillance."

She cocked her head. "Surveillance?" she echoed.

"Yes, I need you to be my optics and audio receptors until I return to the planet," he explained.

"Oh." she folded her arms. "So who do you want me to spy on if I should be so bolt to ask?"

"The Autobots."

She raised an eye ridge. "The Autobots? You mean the ones who did you in?"

He nodded though he did not like how she framed the question. "Exactly. I need you to watch them for me, make sure they are none the wiser of my plans. I need to know what they're doing and you're the only one I know of who could do it."

"What about Soundwave?" she asked, remembering a brief encounter she'd had with the sound system transformer. The dark blue Decepticon seemed to be better at spying than she was, mostly because he was small in his true form and harder to spot. "He would be able to accomplish it better than I could. After all he's the one who nearly reprogrammed those wannabes."

"I considered him, yes," the other robot confirmed. "But I could not pick up his energy signature."

"So I was your second choice?" her optics dimmed with annoyance. "Okay, fine. It's not like I have anything _else_ to do. But let me warn you right now; if you do to me what you did during that space bridge thing you're going to wish you'd never contacted me."

"I'm sure I won't." then, before she could come up with a retort, the screen went blank.

Slipstream stared at the screen for a moment then spun around and stomped away. _I hope this is worth it! _

* * *

Prowl and Sari made it to the park without any incidents. Lately it seemed that wherever they went, something would happen along the way to distract them. This time everything went according to plan and the two reached the park around sunset. "Won't your dad be worried?" he'd asked her. "It's getting dark..."

"No," she replied quickly. "It's the weekend. I can stay out longer on weekends. Dad knows I can take care of myself, though prefers it if I have somebody he trusts go out with me to make sure nothing happens. You fit the bill so all is well in Detroit."

He gave her a slight smile then parked the bike, chaining it to a lamppost so it wouldn't get stolen. He'd noticed some people giving the machine envious glances and didn't want to chance it getting stolen, not after all the work Professor Sumdac went through to build it. "Come on," he said, taking her hand before she could do it first. "Let's go check on those kittens."

She gave him a smile. "Let's." then she tugged on his hand and they were off.

* * *

The canister shattered when it hit the floor, emitting a thick cloud of green smoke.

Barricade instinctly stepped away from the growing mass of toxins. Something told him not to get too close to it. He looked up at Oil Slick who just stared at him impassively. He was waiting for the stuff to start affecting him.

The police-bot moved further away, not realizing that there wasn't much room in the chamber he'd been exploring when he'd broke the Decepticon's cover. His back scraped against the wall and he found he was trapped. The cloud hadn't reached him yet but it was spreading, coming toward him as if it knew exactly where he was. "Get rid of it!" he growled at Oil Slick through clenched teeth.

The cyber ninja didn't even pretend to do so. "I don't obey your orders, Autobot," he shot back, folding his arms. "besides the fear gas won't disappear until it finds its victim."

Barricade's optics flashed. "Fear gas?!" He remembered hearing about this sort of thing from Rodimus who had gotten his biggest fear exposed. Cosmic rust. While Barricade wasn't afraid of Cosmic Rust he was afraid of something much worse.

The cyber ninja nodded. "Yes, fear gas. If it touches you it'll bring out your worst fear." now he did smile. "It will find you and when it does let's hope you don't have any fears because it will increase them by one hundred percent, leaving you nothing more than a whimpering shell." he laughed, a highly unpleasant sound.

Barricade glared at him, his optics flaring in fury. "You lunatic!" he shouted.

Oil Slick merely smirked. "I've been called worse."

By then the gas was nearly upon the police-bot. He plastered himself again the wall, trying his best to avoid touching it or absorbing it into his vents. Oil Slick watched him with amusement. "Something wrong?" he asked. "Got some really bad fears you don't feel like facing?"

Barricade said nothing. He wasn't about to tell this jerk-off about his fears, which were few but bad anyway. It wouldn't matter soon since he had nowhere else to go and the cloud was inching nearer and nearer. He pressed himself closer to the wall, though there was no more space to do so. If only he could somehow divert the cloud, send it way from himself? But how?

He looked at the gun still grasped in his hand then over at Oil Slick who was now looking gleeful. "I wonder what kind of fears rest inside the processor of traitorous Autobots?" he said.

Barricade met his optics. "Why don't we find out?" then he chucked his gun at the other robot.

Before he could duck the weapon smashed into the glass bulb protecting Oil Slick's head. The fragile glass burst on impact, sending shards flying in all directions. The moment this happened the cloud of fear gas changed direction as if it was really alive after all and converged on him, seeping into his mouth and eyes.

The room changed before his optics and his own fears surfaced. As Barricade watched the cyber ninja's expression changed from shocked to utter terror. He stared right at the police-bot but he no longer say him. Something much more sinister had take his place. A large, planet sized, robot with horns and flaring green optics. "Get away from me!" he yelled.

Now that the gas had found a new victim Barricade walked toward him, confident. Oil Slick stepped back. "Say back!" he yelled.

The Autobot wasn't about to heed. He kept on coming and the ninja kept on moving away until he tripped over his own feet and fell to the floor. Barricade stared down at the Decepticon, a cruel smile on his face. "How does it feel to be on the receiving end, traitor?" he asked. "You call me a turn coat when you did the exact same thing. Maybe you should think twice before you spout off insults."

Oil Slick did not answer. He just stared up at him, seeing the police bot but not seeing him. The police-bot turned away from him and retrieved his gun. He walked away without anymore words, though he was tempted to show the now cowed ninja who was boss.

But he did not. He was better than that. He knew the effects of the gas would wear off eventually. He'd be ready when that happened. If Oil Slick tried anything else he wouldn't be so merciful.

Secretly he was looking forward to it. He was going to enjoy another confrontation with him.

_Let's just hope he doesn't use those slagging canisters next time. _

* * *

The kittens and their mother were doing just fine. Prowl and Sari left them where they were, knowing it was still too early to take the mother cat and her kittens back to the Witwickies. So far nothing bad had happened so they knew the family would be all right a little longer.

Their good deed done for the day the two techno organics walked around the park which was now bathed in twilight, which washed the park in a fading golden glow. They weren't holding hands, just walking side by side. Crickets chirped around them like a symphony. It was really peaceful and Prowl couldn't help smiling.

They returned to the main area of the park. Even at this hour there were people hanging around the place, mostly teens and couples. As the pair headed toward the parking lot Prowl noticed a teenage boy and a girl about the same age sitting at one of the benches. He noticed their heads were together and they seemed to be doing something with their mouths. He'd never seen that before and stopped in his tracks, fascinated.

Sari felt a tug on the sleeve of her dress. "Yeah?" she asked, looking at him.

The cyber ninja pointed toward the couple. "What are they doing?" he asked her.

She looked where he indicated and spotted the couple in the middle of a make out session. "Oh that?" she said, also pointing.

"Yeah."

"That's called kissing."

He looked at her, confused. "What's kissing?"

"It's something people do when they really like each other," she explained.

"Why?"

"I don't know." she shrugged. "It's just something they do."

"But why do they have to do it just because they like each other?" he questioned. "Why can't they do it for some other reason?"

"I wouldn't want to do something like that to somebody I hate," she told him. "It would be weird and they would get the wrong idea."

"Oh."

Sari noticed the look on his face and pulled him away from the couple. "Let's go," she said, leading him toward the parking lot. The conversation had made her uncomfortable.

He let her take him, his expression thoughtful. They were nearly at the end of the parking lot where the motorcycle was parked when Prowl said, looking at Sari. "People do it because they like each other?"

"Yeah," she said, nodding. "It means they have nice feelings for each other. I've been told it feels really good."

He was silent for another moment then looked at her. "Hmm."

"What?"

He stepped in front of her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Can you show me?"

She stared at him, wide eyed. "What?!"

"Show me," he said. "I want to know what the big deal is."

She just stared at him, feeling nervous all of a sudden. Why did Prowl want to try it so much? Was it just mere curiosity? "I don't know," she told him, rubbing her left arm nervously. "I've never done it."

His hands released her shoulders and rested them on her cheeks. "Then why don't we find out together." then, before she could protest, his lips touched hers.

Sari stiffened and then found herself relaxing, leaning into the kiss.

Before Prowl even realized what he was doing, he had wrapped his arms around her. She tensed, but then melted into his embrace...

* * *

Bumblebee was out on a patrol with Bulkhead, and just happened to see two familiar figures on the side of the road, huddling closely against each other.

Bumblebee screeched to a halt, causing Bulkhead to nearly collide with his back fender. Both of them transformed, and Bulkhead tried to see what Bee was looking at.

After a moment Bumblebee said. "Looks like Prowl and Sari standing there," he pointed. "What are they doing?"

Bulkhead squinted his optics, then said, "I don't know, I think that's what humans call 'hugging', but what are they doing with their mouths?"

"Maybe they are trying to swallow each other's tongues?" Bee asked with a weirded out look on his face.

The large green robot stared down at it, looking doubtful. "I'm not sure that's what they're doing," he said uncertainly.

"Then what-" and then it hit him. his optics widened and his face got a really comical look to it. He looked back at the two techno organics still locked in the war of tongues._Nooooooooooo!! _a hysterical voice screamed up one side of his processor and down the other.

Before Bulkhead could stop him Bee rushed toward them.

"Hey! What in Primus do you think you're doing?!"

Prowl and Sari heard the voice at the same time and finally parted to turn their heads toward the speaker. It was Bumblebee. His face had a weird red tint to it.

Prowl only seen that look a few times before. Bee was angry. But why?

"Bumblebee," Sari said, her voice sounding strange, as if she was flustered. "What are you doing here?"

"Bulkhead and I were patrolling," he said shortly. "Making sure no Decepticons were lurking around." he cast a pointed glance at Prowl who felt indignation well up in his chest. "What in Primus name do you two think you're doing?"

"What?" she asked sounding unsure.

"Don't give me that innocent face," he snapped. "I saw what you were doing."

"You were spying on us?" she demanded, her own voice beginning to fill with temper.

"No," he shot back. "I already told you that. We just happened to see you two stuffing each others faces." he folded his arms. "I'd like to know what that was about."

"I wanted to know what kissing was," Prowl spoke up, not the least intimidated by Bumblebee's tone. Human or not he was still older than the immature yellow Autobot and he did not take kindly to being talked down upon as if he were a naughty sparkling. "She was just showing me why it was such a big deal."

Bumblebee's optics hardened. He glared at Prowl. "You would already know that stuff if you watched movies," he informed him. "It's not that hard to figure out."

"Some of us don't waste all our time watching television," he informed him.

But by then Bee wasn't listening. He looked back at Sari. She looked back at him with a blank look on her face. Suddenly he transformed and opened the door. "Get in," he told her. "I'm taking you home."

"Bumblebee-" she started to protest.

"GET IN!" he ordered in a voice not to be argued with.

She cast her eyes toward Prowl then did what she was told though she wasn't happy about it. The door hadn't so much as slammed shut when Bumblebee pulled out of the parking lot and tore down the street as if Decepticon's were firing on him.

Prowl stood by his bike, watching the yellow car and it's passenger disappear into the night. He felt his indignation swell up into a fiercer emotion. Anger. He turned away and mightily kicked the lamppost his bike was chained to, cursing under his breath. Not just at Bumblebee but at himself for doing such a uncharacteristic thing in the first place.

"Stupid, stupid stupid!"

"It wasn't your fault," Bulkhead spoke up just then.

Prowl turned his head. The large green Autobot had stepped into the pale illumination of the streetlight. "Somehow I doubt that." he told him. "Bumblebee is going to blame me for it for the rest of my life. He's going to think I did it for all the wrong reasons."

"But you didn't, did you?"

"Of course I didn't!" Prowl snapped. "I would never do something like that to Sari! We are friends. I would never intentionally do anything to ruin our friendship." he turned away and unchained his bike. "I care about her too much for that."

* * *

"You had no right to do that."

"What?" Bee's voice rang with righteous indignation. "Telling Prowl off? He deserved it, taking advantage of you like that."

"He wasn't taking advantage of me!" Sari protested, looking at the blinking light in the dashboard. "He just wanted to know what kissing was,"

"By sucking off your face?" he asked, his voice so sharp it made her jump. "Sari, I hope you aren't that naive. I know for a fact he was aware what kissing was. He just wanted to-"

"Bee, stop being so childish!" she cut him off., kicking at the dashboard "He did not!"

"How do you know?" he snapped. "Why are you so mad at me for? He's the one who-"

Sari slapped her hands over her ears. "I don't want to hear it!" she cut him off. "I'm surprised at you, Bumblebee. How could you even think such a thing? This is Prowl we're talking about. He wouldn't do anything like that. I don't care if he's like me now. He's still Prowl and if you think he'd do that on purpose just to satisfy himself, you don't know him as well as you thought." she was quiet for a moment then added. "I guess I don't know _you_ as well as I thought either."

"Sari.." he began.

But she was no longer listening. She activated her helmet and set the sound to mute, shutting off any further protests.

They rode the rest of the way to the Tower in silence.

* * *

Slipstream found herself following Bulkhead and Bumblebee around until she grew bored. Wanting to at least attempt to obey Megatron's orders, she decided to spy on Optimus Prime instead and flew off before the confrontation between Bumblebee and Prowl happened. If she had stayed long enough to see that she might have discovered something extremely interesting.

As it turned out she didn't find out that Optimus was gone either because something else caught her attention.

As she flew low over the city, in vehicle mode, she caught a glint of something off to her right. Banking she turned sideways and let her scanners zero in on it. She still couldn't make it out but whatever it was it was glowing.

Curious now, she put more power into her thrusters and shot toward the spot. When she reached the place she hovered above the area, looking over the space before her. It was some kind of loading dock. The glowing object was off to the side and pulsating.

She landed now and walked slowly toward it, her nerves on edge in case this was all a clever ruse created by the Autobots to create whatever remaining Decepticons were left on the planet. She was going to be ready if this was an ambush. She wouldn't go down without a fight.

As it turned out she had nothing to worry about. Not one Autobot popped out of the shadows to fire at her. She was able to locate the glowing object, pinned under a rusted support less dumpster, and pulled it out.

What came off in her hand gave her pause. She stared at the object as if she had no idea what is was. Then the answer came to her and she smiled.

_Perfect. _

_A/N_

_Yes, I used one of your ideas Marshall. I wasn't sure how I was going to put it into the story at first but I finally came up with something. Right now I'm a little stuck. I'm writing chapters but feeling mechanical about it. Like I lost my inspiration. All well. Maybe I'll get it back when I'm not feeling so depressed about things. _

_I think I might have to rewatch A Bridge Too Close. My take on Slipstream is different than others it seems.._


	17. Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

Prowl no longer had anything to do at the park now that Sari was gone and decided to just head home. But he didn't go home with Bulkhead because he knew Bulkead would want to talk about it and he didn't want to discuss the incident further. As he rode back to the plant on the motorcycle Professor Sumdac had built for him he replayed the scene over and over.

They had kissed.

_Made out_ was a better word for it.

It had started out just innocent curiosity. He'd never meant for it to excel into...that. It was embarrassing just thinking about it. He began to worry if maybe this would do something to their friendship.

_I hope Sari's not upset, _he thought. _I hope it didn't scare her. If she is still talking to me I won't ever do something like that again._

He wasn't sure he could even look her in the eye after this. She might not want to speak to him again... but she hadn't really seemed upset about it at all. Bumblebee was the one who'd acted like he'd committed the unforgivable sin. If anyone treated him differently it would be him.

But Prowl didn't really care about Bumblebee's feelings.

Not this. The young Autobot was being irrational and if he wasn't jealous like he claimed... why would he go crazy like that?

He didn't want to think about it.

Prowl pushed the thoughts out of his mind and focused on the road ahead.

* * *

The effects of Oil Slick's fear gas wore off not long after Barricade left. The Decepticon ninja's system helped is along. Because he'd worked with chemicals for so long, he'd gained some immunity to his own weapons. Even as Barricade had stood over him, spouting nonsense the fear gas had begun to erode. If he'd stayed a minute longer the police-bot would have spent the rest of the ride in the repair bay.

Oil Slick got off the floor, slowly so not to bring on any unnecessary side effects. When he was standing he looked around himself. The hall was empty. Barricade was gone.

_But he can't get far. We're on a ship. He has no place else to go until we reach Earth. By then... _

He bent down to clean up the shards that were once his helmet. _He won't function properly anymore. _

_

* * *

_

Prowl decided to not return to the plant for the night until he was sure Bumblebee had gone down for a recharge. He did not want to have to face the younger Autobot tonight, not after what happened. He was sure to bring it up and once again accuse the cyber ninja of tricking Sari. Prowl didn't feel like dealing with that tonight.

Instead he drove out of the city, heading toward the country side. He rode until he was out in farm country then he took the bike off the road and turned off the motor. Then he just sat there, looking at the moonlight covered pastureland.

He took a deep breath, breathing in the sweet scent of fresh air.

_It's peaceful out here, _he though, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. _Unspoiled. I could stay here forever..._

But he couldn't do that. Much as he didn't want to admit it he could not stay away from Detroit forever. He had to go back, even if he got lectured about what there was also the chance that Jazz's hunch was right and Megatron would return to the planet. Even if he was now like Sari he would still be useful. Plus there was the thing with Powell. He might still decide to file a complaint.

Prowl knew he couldn't avoid that. If he did he'd just look guilty. It hadn't been his fault to begin with. But Fanzone might not see it that way. He would tell him that he shouldn't have lost his temper. The man had let it go once.... but he undoubtedly wouldn't let him get away with it twice.

He sighed. _If he does I deserve it. _

But that wasn't completely true either.

* * *

Slipstream took the AllSpark fragment back to the moon. The glowing blue object thrummed gently in her hand, making her feel strange. The tiny fragment in her spark chamber that kept her alive thrummed along with it. It was almost like they wanted to come back together and she had the temptation to thrust the fragment into her own spark chamber with the fragment.

But she resisted the urge, reminding herself that she had a much different use in store for the fragment. One that she had no intention of telling Megatron.

If he betrayed her she needed something to teach him a lesson, she just didn't know what that was yet.

* * *

Bumblebee dropped Sari off at home. She headed inside without even telling him good night or looking back. The fact hurt him more than he realized. She was angry with him and she would likely stay that way for a long time. He was going to have to be careful around her for the next few days until she cooled off.

He blamed Prowl. It had been his fault. If he hadn't done what he did she would not have gotten angry at Bumblebee.

_I'm going to have a little talk with him when I get back. _he promised himself.

But when he got to the plant Prowl wasn't there.

"Where's Prowl?" Bumblebee asked, walking into the repair bay.

"How should I know?" Ratchet demanded, not bothering to turn around. "I don't spy on him. Why do you want to know where he is anyway?"

'I want to talk to him about something," Bee replied, folding his arms.

The young Autobot's tone made the medic curious. He looked at him. "What?"

Bee hesitated. He didn't feel comfortable discussing it with Ratchet. This was just between himself and Prowl. The others thought he was just over-reacting. If he told them what he and Bulkhead had seen they all might think he was exaggerating.

If Ratchet asked Prowl what happened and he told him his side of the story he would most likely believe him over Bumblebee. After all; Prowl would never lie about something like that. If he said he was just being curious then it must be so.

But Bumblebee knew better. Or he thought he did.

"Never mind," the young Autobot said, waving the whole subject off. "It's not important."

Then he turned around and headed out of the room. _When he gets back I'm going to have a little talk with him. _he vowed.

* * *

Prowl sensed he was being followed. He glanced over his shoulder and spotted large framed car painted in dark colors further down the road, keeping pace with his own speed.

_Huh?_

He added more speed and accelerated. The car did the same, staying twenty feet behind him, but keeping pace.

Prowl was beginning to feel nervous. Something in his mind kept insisting this was more than just a mere person, though Prowl didn't have a clue what kind of person would want to follow him anyway. Aside from a few people in Detroit, he didn't know anybody. Especially one with that kind of car.

Could it be a gangster or something?

He looked back again. The car seemed a bit closer and he could make out its colors. Black. Black and green.. or at least the other color _looked_ green. He couldn't tell very well with the bigger vehicle's high beams glaring in his face.

He looked ahead again. _Black and green. A large muscle car with high beams. Silent. Deadly. _

With these bits of information he could easily figure out who it was, or at least guess who it might be.

_Lockdown._

Who else would look like that?

Prowl cursed. He was hoping he'd never see that bounty hunter again. _But how does he know it's me? How did he figure it out? Or does he think I'm a mere human and is just trying to scare me._

He gripped the handlebars and sped up again. It didn't really matter how Lockdown figured it out, if he had. What mattered most was getting away from him. With this new body Prowl couldn't really beat the bolts out of him. His only ability was unity with dumb machines. It wouldn't do him much good fighting Lockdown.

Unless he could touch him and try to control the bounty hunter's mind.

Tempting but he wasn't about to try it. It would most likely get him killed. Lockdown had a strong will and a mind of his own. He wasn't like normal machines. It would be impossible to control him even if he concentrated hard.

Suddenly the car accelerated. Before Prowl could speed up or swerve out of the way, the larger vehicle slammed into his rear tire.

The cyber ninja lost control instantly and swerved sharply to the right. He clutched the handlebars in a death grip, trying to regain management of the bike. He gritted his teeth together and gave the bars a sharp jerk.

It didn't help.

The bike's wheel suddenly flew in the air as it tipped sideways. Prowl, realizing there wasn't any hope, let go of the handlebars and using the bikes side as a spring board, launched himself into the air.

Below him the motorcycle rolled end over end and crashed into the guardrail. The car shot past but then braked and did a U-turn swinging around and coming back.

Prowl landed on the street and faced the car as it charged forward. He waited until it was almost on top of him before acting. He jumped up, placing both hands on the hood of the car, and sprung into the air. He twisted around and landed on the pavement as the vehicle shot forward then jerked around for another try.

"Not this time."

Prowl ran toward it, playing chicken with the machine. It swerved out of the way as if it wanted to avoid hitting him. He jerked sideways and landed a hard kick on the rear bumper. The force of the blow knocked it forward out of control.

The car skidded across the pavement before slamming hard into the guard rail, not breaking it only giving it a large dent. Then it just stayed there, not backing up or doing anything else.

Prowl walked toward it, cautiously. He had to be ready in case Lockdown tried something else. Like backing up and slamming his rear bumper into Prowl's stomach.

Before he even got close the dark colored vehicle backed away from the railing, it's front bumper dented but otherwise in good condition and began to change shape. It grew taller and in a matter of seconds the car loomed over Prowl, no longer a simple vehicle but a thinking sentient being. Lockdown.

_I was right. _

He glared up at the bounty hunter robot who stared back at him impassively. He wasn't sure what the frantionless robot was thinking but he could guess that it wasn't happy thoughts.

When he did speak it wasn't what he was expecting. "I didn't think to see this."

Prowl blinked. _Huh? _

Lockdown knelt down and got into Prowl's face. The small techno organic who was once a full robot stepped back, clenching his fists. "Looks like the rumors are true. You _did_ come back as a human."

"What do you want, Lockdown?" Prowl demanded, tensing. He might be a small creature now but he could still defend himself.

"Nothing much," the hunter replied in his raspy voice. He poked Prowl lightly with a finger, nearly knocking him over. "Just satisfying my curiosity."

Prowl smacked at the offending digit. "Don't touch me!" he ordered.

Lockdown jerked his hand away as if the blow had hurt him. "Now don't be like that," he said.

"Don't be like that!?" the cyber ninja shouted. "Why shouldn't I be like that!? You tried to _kill_ me!"

"I wasn't trying to kill you."

"Don't lie to me," he snapped. "You tried to run me off the road and then you tried to run me over. Don't _tell _me you weren't trying to kill me!"

The bounty hunter sighed, straightening up to his full height. "If I wanted to kill you, Prowl. I would have done so," he pointed out. "I was just testing you."

Prowl raised an eyebrow. 'Testing me?" he glared at him over the top of his glasses. Doing so made Lockdown look blurry but he didn't care. "Why in Primus would you want to test me for?"

"I didn't believe the rumor I heard," Lockdown explained. "I was told what your new body looked like so when I saw somebody who looked like it matching the description I wanted to be sure it really _was_ you."

"Why-" Prowl stopped. How had Lockdown gotten a description of him? Did he go to Cybertron and hear about it or did....? "Who told you about me?"

"Nobody." the bounty hunter folded his arms. "I just happened to be in the right place at the right time and overheard it."

Prowl did not comment. Why should Lockdown care about Prowl's new body anyway? The cyber ninja had made it perfectly clear that he wanted nothing to do with him. Either Lockdown had problems with his processor or he had another reason. _I don't think he came all the way back to Earth just to satisfy his curiosity about me. There's another reason. There is always another reason. _"Who is it this time?"

Lockdown stared down at him. "I beg your pardon?"

"Don't play dumb with me," Prowl said, folding his arms. "I know you didn't come back here just to see if I was really a human. Somebody sent you here for another reason. Why don't you just admit it?"

"Even if that was true I wouldn't tell you anyway," the bounty hunter informed him. "Employee-Employer privilege, you know."

"So somebody _did_ send you."  
Lockdown frowned. "Yes, somebody sent me," he told him. "But that is none of your business."

"It is my business if it involves me and my comrades."

"Well it doesn't. It's got nothing to do with any of you."  
"Then why follow me around?" the cyber ninja wanted to know. "Not just to test my reaction. I know there's more to it then that."

"Paranoid as always." Lockdown transformed back into car mode. "You know everything isn't always about you, Prowl."

Lockdown backed up then took off down the street before the cyber ninja could say anything more. Prowl watched him drive away then turned away, focusing his attention on his bike. He walked over to it and grabbed the handlebars.

Instantly the inner workings of the machine came into his mind as if it was a part of him. The vehicle, though damaged, was still in proper working order. Prowl sighed with relief and pulled the bike loose.

He climbed onto it and started the motor. It activated on the first try. _Good. _

* * *

Slipstream entered the ruins of the Nemesis noticing how drab it looked. After spending so much time there she hadn't really paid all that much attention to how gloomy the place was compared to Earth.

_I really need to do something about that. _

She looked down at the fragment in her hand. It was glowing palely and gave a soft pulsate. The tiny fragment in her chest responded to it also pulsating. It felt weird. She didn't like it.

_What are you trying to do to me?_

The sharp pulsated again then sent a shock up her arm. She gasped, dropping the shard onto the floor.

_What was that?_

Just then she noticed that the control panel's screen was blinking.

Forgetting about the shard she crossed the room and hit the receive button. Megatron's image appeared on the screen.

"M-Megatron," she said.

"What have you learned about the Autobots?" he asked her, getting right to the point.

"Nothing much," she said honestly. "They don't seem to be aware that you are returned."

Megatron smirked. "Excellent."

"But I have a question," she said, leaning forward as if doing so would put her closer to him.

"Yes?" he sounded impatient.

"Why does it matter?" she asked. "I mean either way they don't know when you're going to arrive and besides without that cyber ninja their chances of beating you are much slimmer."

While she conversed with Megatron the female seeker failed to notice the weird phenomina going on behind her. The shard was glowing brighter then before. On the table the Corpse seemed to be feeding off the shards energy. The colors on its frame were suddenly repainting themselves but looked slightly different. Instead of dark gray, black, and magenta the colors were being replaced by red, light gray, and blue.

"Yes, it is true that without the cyber ninja they are not that much of a threat," Megatron replied. "But the one named Optimus Prime is just as dangerous. I do not intend to let him get away with humiliating me."

Slipstream folded her arms and cocked her head. "Oh, do you mean that red, white, and blue Autobot with the fake wings?"

"Yes." he nodded.

"He didn't seem all that formidable to me," she replied. "I easily knocked him out of the sky." Behind her on the table the corpse's one hand jerked then closed into a fist.

"I can assure you he is more dangerous than you think he is."

"So what do you plan on doing?" she wanted to know. "Kill him?" for some reason the thought made her laugh. Megatron frowned, clearly not happy with her reaction. "If you wanted to kill him you would have already. He gave you plenty of chances and yet you let him get away." she raised her hands to gesture better. "It's almost like you _wanted_ him to take you down."

"I can assure you, my dear that that was not my intention." he cut in.

"No," she said, sarcasm sneaking into her voice. "You just wanted to have some fun with him instead."

Megatron didn't answer. It seemed to him that more than one part of Starscream had ended up in her. She seemed to have inherited his sarcasm as well. "You're lucky that you're on the other side of that screen right now."

"Because if I wasn't you'd probably punish me." she noticed he was starting to look irritated and reared herself in. If she ticked him off he'd come after her when he got to the planet. The last thing she needed was that. She intended to live as long as possible. "I apologize." she said quickly.

His expression told her that she wasn't forgiven. "We shall discuss your attitude when I reach Earth," he told her. "For now you can keep on following my orders and reporting back to me. Understood."

She nodded slowly. "Understood."

Before Megatron could say anything else the screen went blank. Slipstream stared at the screen for the longest time before finally saying. "Megatron?" she played around with the buttons on the console, trying to get the picture to come back in. "Megatron?"

"I'm afraid Megatron can't hear you."

The female seeker jumped, a jolt going up and down her back. She knew that voice. Spinning around she faced the speaker. "It's you!"

_A/N_

_I'm not sure why Lockdown is here right now. I just felt he needed to be in the story. I'm going to come up with a good reason. Right now part of it could be that Megatron hired him again. And Slipstream's plan was ruined.  
_

_ I do NOT like this chapter in the slightest. Something about it really bothers me. _


	18. Chapter 18

CHAPTER 18

_A few days later_

Sari was still not talking to Bumblebee. The day after the incident in the park she came to the plant but ignored the yellow Autobot whenever he tried to talk to her. Prowl knew she was angry at him because she told him. Of course Prowl couldn't blame her.

But they had their own problems as well. While Bee wasn't talking to Prowl and Sari wasn't talking to Bee, Prowl was feeling uncomfortable around Sari. Whenever he looked at her the memory of their kiss came back to him and he knew he was blushing. He didn't know why he was suddenly feeling that way around her or why the memory embarrassed him but it did. So they didn't do much talking either.

Poor Sari.

"When is Optimus coming back?" the girl asked Ratchet a few days after the incident.

The medic shook his head. "I don't know," he told her. "He's still got a few things he needs to take care of. Ultra Magnus asked him to stay on Cybertron a bit longer because he knows more about Megatron than the rest of us do. Magnus thinks Prime knows where Megatron will come up."

"But Jazz said he would come here," she told him. "Doesn't Magnus believe him?"

"I don't know," Ratchet said, shrugging. "I think he's trying to be cautious just in case Jazz is wrong."

"Oh." she was silent for a moment then said. "I wish Prowl and Bumblebee were getting along."

"Well they have their own problems," Ratchet said, remembering the day Prowl had gotten back from his drive.

Bee had gotten all over him about something. Ratchet wasn't sure what it was about since he hadn't been close enough to hear and neither would tell him when he asked. All he knew was that it was important enough for Prowl to put his new habit to good use. He'd given the young Autobot a sharp kick on the foot. "I'm sure they'll get over it eventually."

"I hope so," she said, looking over at the couch where Bee said playing his Xbox. "Because it's been really boring here lately."

"If you're so bored why don't you and Bumblebee talk over your own misunderstanding?" the medic suggested. "I don't know why you two are mad at each other but seeing you not hanging around feels weird."

Sari folded her arms. "Bee knows why I'm mad at him," she told him. "I'm not going to speak to him until he apologizes."

Ratchet didn't push it. "Okay," he said, turning away from her. "But Bumblebee's never been one to say he's sorry easily. You might have to make the first move."

"I have no intention of making the first move," she grumbled. "Not after what he said about Prowl."

Now Ratchet was really curious. "What _did _Bumblebee say about Prowl?"

But she didn't reply. Instead she asked. "Speaking of Prowl, where is he?"

"I think he went out for a drive," the medic replied. "He's been doing that a lot lately."

"What for?"

"Well for one thing he's been strangely nervous around you," he explained. "For another he thought he saw somebody he knew a few days ago and wants to find him."

"Somebody he knows?" she asked. "Who?"

"I don't know." The medic shrugged. "I can't tell you anymore than that."

* * *

Prowl had no luck finding Lockdown. He'd searched almost every part in and around the city but accomplished little. The bounty hunter was gone or just hiding himself real well.

_Hiding. _the cyber ninja thought, riding his bike through traffic. _He had the same training I had. He knows how to hide himself. He hasn't left the area, I can sense him. I just don't know where he is. _

He glanced up at the sky. It was drab and overcast. The cloudy conditions didn't help his mood. He felt as gray as the clouds. _I wish I knew what else to do. It would be so much easier if I were myself again. _His eyelids fell halfway. _If I were still like the others I would have found him by now. But since I'm so small and powerless it's much harder. _

He jerked, sitting up straight. _Where did __**that**__ thought come from?_

Something wet splotched onto his hand. He looked down at it. A raindrop nothing more. He let go of the handlebar and raised his hand to his face, staring at the drop. It stood out against his clothing for a few seconds then was absorbed into the material, leaving a small spot of darkened cloth. _Fascinating. _

At that moment thunder rumbled overheard and the sky let loose. Within seconds Prowl was soaked. But he didn't mind that much. It felt nice. The day had been hot and sticky and the rain was cool and refreshing. He raised his head and let it cascade onto his face, closing his eyes and just enjoying it.

_Ahh..._

Just then a car shot past him it's tires splashing in a large puddle that had formed on the street, spraying him with muddy water.

Prowl sat there, staring after the car, water dripping off his entire body, too shocked to do anything. He looked down at himself and noticed his clothes were covered in filth. When he ran a hand through his hair, gobs of the gunk came off on his hand. He stared at the wet dirt a moment then dropped his hand and sighed, turning the bike around.

So much for that.

* * *

Barricade knew he was in trouble. He didn't need anyone to tell him this. He also had second thoughts.

It hadn't taken him long to realize that what he did to Oil Slick would get him in trouble which it had. Megatron hadn't been very happy about the incident. The former Autobot hadn't intended to tell him what had happened and neither had Oil Slick. The latter had wanted to deal with him himself but his revenge had never come to be.

Unfortunately Cyclonus had seen it all. Though he never said much before then, he'd talked up a storm when he'd reported it to the Decepticon Supreme Commander.

But who had gotten in trouble for the incident?

Not Oil Slick the instigator. But Barricade.

All the blame had been dropped on him. Megatron had given him a good old smack across the face then beat the living slag out of him. Then, to make a point, he'd reached down and yanked the Autobot insignia right off Cade's chest. Not just the symbol itself but part of the frame as well.

"You are no longer an Autobot," the large grey robot had told him, throwing the small red insignia aside. "You do not need that anymore but you are not yet a Decepticon. It would be best if you did not have either symbol. This should help you remember your place. Right now you are lower than an Autobot. You are Empty and Empties do not stand up to Decepticons."

Then he'd turned away but added. "Next time let it happen. I have no intention of repeating myself."

So Barricade sat by himself in the back of the control room, his optics on the floor and his hand running absently over the place where his fraction symbol used to be. It was still sore because that was the one place nobody bothered repairing. It made a point and nobody was going to let him forget it.

But with that reminder came something else. Regret.

He hadn't realized just how important that symbol had been to him. Though he wasn't an Autobot anymore thanks to his own choices the symbol had stood for something. With it gone there was nothing left that he owned. Everything about him belonged to somebody else now.

_I am an idiot. A complete and utter fool. _

He lifted his head and studied the Decepticons around him. They were purposely ignoring him, not wanting to make optic contact. He sighed and looked away. What did he expect? None of them wanted him on the ship to begin with.

The reason he was there was because Megatron had allowed it but now even he wasn't being accepting. Barricade dimmed his optics which had started to slowly change color and let his thoughts run. If things got worse he would have to act. He had no intention of being put offline.

Even if everyone on this ship wanted it to be so.

* * *

When Prowl finally pulled the bike onto the parking lot in front of the plant he felt miserable. For one thing he was soaking wet and for another he was covered in mud. Not just one car had splashed it on him but many. He came to realize that riding a motorcycle in the rain was a bad idea. Especially since it had conked out a few times.

_Next time when it rains, I'll stay indoors. _he vowed as he chained up the bike then headed into the plant.

The moment he stepped into the living room area he felt all eyes instantly lock onto him. He lifted his head and looked back. Ratchet, Sari, and Bumblebee were all staring at him.

"What?" he asked, unable to keep the irritation out of his voice.

"What happened to _you_?" Bumblebee asked pointing. "Why are you all wet?"

Prowl looked down at himself. His clothes were soaked and clinging to his skin. A puddle of muddy water was forming at his feet.

"Prowl?" Sari said.

He looked back at them. "I got caught in the rain," he told them. "It's nothing serious. I'm just a little wet."

"A _little_?" Bee exclaimed. "You look like you brought in the whole storm! Any more water and we'll need to build an ark!"

Prowl didn't comment. He just stepped back as if he was going to leave. "Now wait a minute!" Ratchet shouted after him. The cyber ninja paused. He looked over at the medic. "You're not planning on staying that way are you?"

"Why not?" the ninja asked. "I'll dry out soon."

"Because you're filthy!" Sari exclaimed. "You're not just wet! You're covered in mud!"

"So?"

She put her hands on her hips. "Do you intend to walk about covered in dirt once you dry off?" she demanded. "I don't think so."

"It's not anything to worry about," he told her. "It's just a little dirt."

"Prowl!" she shouted, making him jump. "If you were a robot and got covered in mud you're clean yourself off! You're not going to stop because you're a human." she folded her arms. "Besides; you stink."

"I do not!" he said indignantly.

"Uh. actually, Prowl, you do," Bumblebee spoke up. "You've gotten kind of smelly the past few days."

Prowl glared at him. The young robot grinned at him. "Why didn't you tell me?" the cyber ninja snapped.

"Because I knew you wouldn't believe me," the young Autobot shot back. "And if I told you you would just kick me."

"I would-" he stopped. Bumblebee was right. He _would_ have kicked him.

"All right then, stinky," Sari said, grabbing his arm. "You're going to get a shower." she yanked on his arm, leading him out out of the room. "Come along."

Prowl protested. "You don't need to do this," he told her. "I will be fine-"

"Prowl," she said, looking back at him. Something about her eyes cut him off. "Bumblebee was right. You smell. We didn't say anything before because we didn't want to make you mad but I'm being honest. You need to take a shower. It's unhealthy and disgusting to not bath once in awhile. Now you're going to wash up even if I have to tie you up and shove in with all your clothes on!"

He sighed. "All right," he said, giving in. "Let's just get this over with."

Sari took him into the bathroom area of the plant. There was one shower in the room, near the end and away from the toilets. It had one of those sliding doors instead of a curtain. While Prowl waited Sari reached inside and turned on the water, testing it to make sure the temperature was perfect.

When she was satisfied she turned to him. "All right," she said. "Strip."

He stared at her. "_What_?"

She pointed at him. "You're clothes," she said. "Take them off. Don't worry." she added when she saw the look on his face. "I won't watch."

He stared at himself dumbly. "Um..," he began a little uncertainly. "I don't know how."

"Don't know _how_?!" she exclaimed. "What do you _mean_ you don't know how?"

He looked at her sheepishly. "I don't."

"Haven't you gone to the bathroom?" she asked him.

"Of course I have!" he said, feeling his cheeks grow hot. "Do you think I've been going in my pants?"

She made a face. "No, I'm sorry," she said, quickly. "But how can you go to the bathroom and not know how to take off your clothes?"

"I didn't think there was a reason to besides that," he said, folding his arms. He looked annoyed. "If you had said something sooner..."

She frowned. "Prowl, don't tell me all your smarts left your processor when you became human," she said.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he demanded.

"I mean you're acting like you don't know anything," she said. "surely the fact that people take off their clothes was part of your knowledge since you like organics so much and you've seen all those TV shows."

"I never really thought about it."

"What did you think their outfits beamed off and on like _Star Trek_?"

"No," he replied. "I didn't watch movies. I watched nature specials."

"Oh." _of course. _"I'm sorry." she walked toward him. "But you still have to take those off to take shower." she raised her hands. "Here, let me help you."

He stepped away from her. "No thank you, Sari," he said. "I can do it myself."

"Prowl, stop being a big baby," she said, grabbing the front of his shirt. "If you could do it yourself you would have already started."

"It's okay. I know how to do it now." He swatted at her hands, trying to fight her off. She held on tighter, refusing to let go. "Hold still!" she shouted. "Or I'll knock you out!"

Prowl wasn't going to give up without a fight. "No! Stop it! Sari, I'm not a sparkling. I can do it myself!" he tried to move away but tripped over his own feet and fell back. Sari, who was still holding onto his shirt, fell with him.

He landed on the floor with Sari on top of him.

And that's when Bumblebee chose that exact moment to check in on them. "Hey, Sari, you're taking an awful lot of-wah!" He stared at the two figures sprawled on the floor, his optics bugging out of his head.

"It's not what it looks like!" Prowl and Sari said at once.

"What is it then?" he demanded.

"I fell," Prowl said, gently pushing Sari off of him. She stood as he stood. "She kind of fell with me."

By the look on the yellow bots face they both could tell that he'd interpreted his answer the wrong way. "He didn't mean it like that!" Sari spoke up.

"Yeah, sure he didn't." then Bee left the room, slamming the door behind him.

Prowl and Sari were silent for a moment then they looked at each other. Suddenly they burst out laughing.

* * *

Slipstream watched Starscream work feverishly at the computer. He had his back to her and seemed to have forgotten that she even existed. She didn't really care all that much.

A few days ago when he'd cut the connection between herself and Megatron she'd been surprised to see him alive. For one thing he didn't have a AllSpark fragment in his forehead and for another.... of frag it. There was no another. He was alive plain and simple. Though she had no idea how it happened.

The shard she'd been carrying hadn't been anywhere near him. It had been lying on the floor. So how had it revived him? And in doing so why had his colors changed? His frame no longer sported the grays and magenta's from before. They were brighter now. Light gray, red, and blue.

Why had his colors changed?

She wasn't going to ask.

"So tell me," Starscream said suddenly, turning to face her. "What has Megatron been planning since my... untimely demise."

She just glared at him, her mouth shut tight. He'd already asked her that many times already. She wasn't about to tell him that the Decepticon was planning on coming back to Earth for revenge. If she did he'd just start planning ways to kill him. After all he blamed Megatron for what had happened. If the Decepticon commander hadn't of betrayed him he never would have gone to Earth and died. She reminded him that it was the cyber ninjas that had killed him, not Megatron. He hadn't wanted to hear it.

Now his expression mirrored her own. "Come on, you can tell me," he prompted.

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" she snapped.

He crossed the room and loomed over her. She was sitting in Blackarachnia's old chair so she had to look up at him to meet his optics. "We both know why I can't ask him," he answered. "Besides, you telling me will makes things easier for us both."

"I'm not scared of you," she said hotly. "Threaten me all you want but I'm not going to tell you."

Suddenly she was out of the chair and against the wall with Starscream's taloned hands gripping her arms. "You tell me what he's planning or I'll-"

"Or you'll what?" she cut him off. "Kill me? Tear my limbs off and watch me bleed? Go right ahead."

For a moment Starscream didn't move. He just stood there with his "daughter" pinned against the wall, breathing in great gasps. Finally he let her go and turned away, heading back to the computer. "You don't have to tell me now," he said, tapping away on the keys. The screen lit up revealing a picture of Earth. He looked back at her and smiled. "I think I already figured it out."

* * *

"All right, Prowl, it's time you get out of those dirty clothes and got a shower," Sari said once they had calmed down. She reached over and grabbed the front of his shirt. "Now let me take these off for you."

"All right," he said, giving in because he didn't want a repeat of what had just happened.

"Thank you," she replied, looking relieved.

She circled around him, looking for a zipper or something that would unfasten it. "Umm..." she said after a moment. "I can't seem to find a way to take this off."

"Maybe it can't come off," he suggested.

The girl gave him a look. "Of course it can come off. It's loose." She circled him again then stood in front, studying him until he began to feel nervous. Finally she said. "Raise your arms."

He just stared at her. "Excuse me?" he said.

"Raise your arms," she repeated herself. "I think I found out how to get this off." she grabbed her shoulders and raised her dress slightly. "It's got to come off over your head like my clothes do."

"Oh."

"Now raise your arms."

He did what he was told, looking doubtful. Even if she could get it off that way how was she going to get it over his head? She was shorter than him.

Sari grabbed the sides of his shirt and lifted. As she did her eyes took in his bare skinned chest. It was just as tanned as the rest of his body and well muscled. She felt herself blushing but shook her head and kept on going, trying to ignore it. She got as far as his neck then couldn't reach any higher. "You're going to have to do the rest," she told him.

He grabbed the shirt and pulled it back down. "How do you expect me to do that?" he demanded.

"You lift it like I just did," she told him. "I can't get it over your head. I'm not tall enough." she poked him. "How come you came out so tall but I came out shrimpy?"

"Because you're a female," he replied, looking at his shirt, which was now wrinkled. "Fembots never come out as tall as their male counterparts."

"Well that's not fair," she said, looking annoyed.

"That's just how it is." he got a tight grip on his shirt and yanked it over his head like Sari had tried to do. It came off easily and he held it for a moment. "Though there are a few exceptions." he looked at her and noticed something. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

* * *

Megatron stood on the bridge with his arms folded and his optics focused on nothing. His thoughts were running together as he replayed events from the past few weeks. Right now he was focused on the one thing he could not control. The speed of this ship.

_Can't this thing go any faster? _he wondered. _I was told the __**Darksyde**__ was the fastest ship in the fleet next to the __**Nemesis.**__ It's been a week and we don't seem any closer. _he turned and headed back into the control room. "Maybe they just need some motivation."

When he entered the room and stood in the doorway to study the group of Decepticons under his command. There were only five but he'd accomplished plenty with far fewer. He noticed Barricade sitting by himself but chose to ignore him as he crossed the room and stood behind Strika.

As if sensing him behind her she jerked around. "Megatron!" the large femme exclaimed. "Uh... what can I do for you?"

"You can tell me why we have not reached our destination."

"Well uhh...." she turned away. "I have never been to Earth so I can't exactly get there with the snap of your servos. We have to find the place by zeroing in on energy signatures."

"And?"

"There aren't many on the planet you seek." she pressed a button on the keyboard. "But it is a good thing I know what it looks like." an image appeared on the screen. The planet he sough. "I was just about to contact you. We found the planet."

Megatron stared at the white and blue planet called Earth. It was where all his bad luck began and it would be the place where it all ended. "How soon will we reach out destination?"

She didn't hesitate this time. "Tomorrow."

_A/N_

_I'm still a little stuck. Hehehe but I'm getting better. The shower part was a suggestion by one of my reviewers. Since I need more Prowl/Sari moments I decided to use it. I'm not sure they stayed in character though. _


	19. Chapter 19

CHAPTER 19

Sari jumped, realizing she'd been staring at his bare chest. Now that he was shirtless she saw the whole thing and it wasn't that bad to look at.... "Oh!" she exclaimed, her cheeks burning. "N-nothing."

His face said he didn't believe her. "It-it's nothing," she insisted, waving her hands. "I was just uh.." she reached for his belt. "You'll have to take that off to remove your pants."

"Sari." he said, making her jump.

She looked up at him. "Yes?"

"What do you think you're doing?"

"What do you mean?"

"I might be a little ignorant in some forms of human undress but I know that it's not proper for girls to be removing the clothes from males unless she plans to have some kind of... confrontation with him when she is done."

Now Sari's face _did_ turn red. She let go of his belt and stepped back. "I.. uh.."

He started to undo his belt. "It's all right," he said. "I won't tell Bumblebee."

"Why do I care if you tell Bumblebee?" she demanded. "It's not like we're dating or anything."

For some reason her words made him feel better. "I wouldn't tell him anyway," he told her, still trying to undo his belt. "How do you get this thing off?"

Sari reached toward him. "Here let me." she began to carefully unbuckled the belt. "See it's not that hard. All you have to do it pull the strap loose from the buckle and pull back." it came off. "There." she handed it to him. "See how easy that was?"

"Thanks," he said setting the belt on one of the sinks. "I think I have it figured out now."

Sari saw him start to strip off his pants and gasped, spinning around so she wouldn't see anything. He looked at her back and chuckled quietly. She was just too cute. He finished undressing and headed to the shower, Sari noticed the large Autobot symbol tattooed on his back. _Whoa! How come I don't have one of those?_

Prowl's back was to the girl so he did not notice her stare or the body art decorating his back. His attention was completely focused on the shower. The water was still running so he put out his hand to test the water. As soon as it touched his hand he yelped and pulled it back.

"What's wrong?" Sari asked, immediately redirecting her attention. The instant she became aware of him in his birthday suit she looked away. She'd been so focused on the tattoo she hadn't realized how undressed he was.

"The water is too hot," he replied, looking back at her. "are you trying to scald me?"

"I'm sorry," she said, still facing away. "I thought I set it right."

"Looks like you were mistaken." he stared at the knobs. "Which one is which?"

_Uh oh. _Sari realized she would have to help him. Her face started flaming as she learned she might see something... _Get it together, girl. This is __**Prowl.**__ Besides whatever he's got isn't exactly any different than what other men have. You've seen mothers changing their kids. That's what they look like, only a bit bigger._

"Sari?"

She spun around. "Here, let me help you." then she began to walked toward him with her eyes closed.

He watched her, his face etched with confusion. Why was she acting blind? Suddenly she tripped and he moved to catch her. She smacked into his chest and he grabbed her arms to steady her. "Careful."

She opened her eyes, saw what she'd hit and immediately raised her eyes. "Sorry." she said.

"What was that about?" he asked her, straightening her up. "Why were you walking with your eyes closed?"

"I...uh.." she stammered, trying to come up with a good excuse. "I didn't want to.."

"What?"

"Well you..." she pointed at him. "You're not exactly decent."

"Huh?" he looked at himself. "What's wrong with this?"

Her eyes widened. He didn't know? "You're naked!" she blurted out as if it was obvious.

He just stared at her. "What's naked?"

"It's when you don't have any clothes on," she replied.

"Oh. Is that a bad thing?"

"You can't go out in public like that!"

"Why not?"

"Because it's indecent."

"_How _is it indecent?"

_Oh boy. Here we go again. _"Trust me on this," she said, pushing away from him. "It is. If you walked around outside in your birthday suit you would get arrested for indecent exposure."

That seemed to click. "Oh, it's a crime."

"Yeah."

He moved past her. "Then maybe I should put them back on."

"No!" she shouted, grabbing his arm. "You can't shower in your clothes!"

He looked at her. "But you just said-"

"Never mind what I said!" she cut him off. She drug him toward the shower. "Just get in there and wash yourself." she reached in and turned the knobs. She didn't realize she'd stepped into the shower until she felt the now warm water soak her shoulder. "EEEK!"

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" she was soaked. She yanked on him and they traided places. "Just wash yourself!" before he could say anything more she yanked the sliding door shut before she saw anything.

Once it was closed she leaned against the door and sighed. "Phew, I did it."

"Sari?"

_Oh no! _"Yes?"

"What are these bottles for?"

* * *

Slipstream didn't react. She didn't want to accidentally give anything away. If he was testing her reaction to see if she would he was sadly mistaken. "Oh?" was all she said. "and what would that be then?"

"He's coming back to earth," Starscream told her. "and that is why he was talking to you."

"And why would he want to come back to earth?" she questioned, folding her arms.

"Simple," he replied, putting up a taloned finger. "He knows those second rate Autobots are still on the planet as well as that human inventor. The reason he's coming here is to get his revenge for all the humiliation they caused him."

She wasn't impressed. "And what makes you think that would be the reason?"

"Because there is no other reason he would come to this spark forsaken planet," the other seeker answered. "I might have just come back online a few days ago but I don't have an error. If he's talking to you that means he is planning on coming back to the planet." he sat down in one of the chairs and propped his legs up on the control panel. He looked at her and grinned. "Because I doubt he contacted you just to say how lovely you are, my dear."

She kicked the chair and knocked him out of it. "What do you know?" she snapped. "You were never here. Maybe he called me to apologize for leaving me for dead after that whole Space Bridge incident! I don't think any of you felt I was important enough to look for later! Not even that bounty hunter!"

He got up and gave her a look. "Oh I get it," he said. "You think because he's talking to you now it's because he hasn't bothered with you in the past and this is his way of saying he's sorry?" he shook his head. "Sorry, sister, but the only reason he's talking to you is because he knows you'll willingly do things for you. Once he gets here you won't matter anymore."

"How do you know that?" she demanded, clenching her fists.

He folded his arms and met her optics. When he spoke his voice was dead serious. "Because I've known him longer than you have. This is how he rolls."

She couldn't think of a response. Starscream started pacing, all traces of his former attitude gone. "Megatron doesn't really trust anybody, not even his most loyal toy Lugnut. The only person he ever relied on without question was Shockwave. All others are expendable." he pointed at himself. "Just look what he did to me."

"That's because you tried to kill him," she pointed out. "You deserved what you got."

He waved her off. "Details details."

The seeker turned back to the screen. "When he gets here you'll change your tone. I'm right about this. I always am."

* * *

"They're shampoo and body-wash," she told him without opening the door. "You use them to clean yourself."

"Oh." she felt the door shift behind her. She cautiously turned her head sideways. Prowl poked his head and upper half out. "What is this thing for?" he held up what looked like a white fluff thing.

"It's a bath puff," she replied, looking at the puff so she wouldn't have to look at Prowl. "You use it to wash yourself."

He made a face, as if using the thing to clean himself didn't appeal to him. "Sari, no offense but I would not feel comfortable using this thing to clean my body," he told her.

"Well you can't put body-wash on your hand and rub it in!" she exclaimed.

He made a face. "I'm not comfortable with that either."

"What?!"

"Don't you have something called soap?"

_Oh I get it. Bath puffs and body-wash are considered girlie. I guess even transformer guys don't feel comfortable using them. _She looked back at the sinks. A thin bar of soap sat on the rim of one. She crossed the room, grabbed it up, and returned to him, slapping the soap in his hand and taking the puff out of it. He reached into the stall and handed her the body wash.

"Happy now?" she questioned. "Or does the prince need his loyal servant to scrub his back too?"

"No, I am fine," he said, ignoring the sarcasm.

"Then get your shower before you use up all the hot water!"

He closed the door without a word.

Sari waited, when Prowl didn't say anything else she sighed in relief. _At least he didn't ask me to wash him! That would have been uncomfortable. _ She pushed away from the shower and started out of the room.

The girl realized there were no towels in here so that meant she had to go to her old room and see if she'd let any behind. But just as she put her hand on the door knob Prowl's voice reached her ears. "Sari?"

_What now? _She turned her head. "I am not-" But the rest of the sentence was cut off. Prowl had opened the door all the way showing off everything. Sari's eyes widened and she covered her face with her hands. "Eek! Don't do that!"

He didn't apologize. Instead he asked. "Where are you going?"

"To get you a towel," she replied, her hands still over her face. "You're gonna have to dry yourself off and..." she looked at his dirty clothes so she wouldn't have to look at him. "On second thought. I'm going to get you a robe as well." she crossed the room and collected his clothing. "You can't exactly wear dirty clothes after you just cleaned up. I'll put these in the washing machine and find you a towel and a robe."

"All right."

She turned and ran out of there, her face burning.

* * *

Prowl exited the shower fifteen minutes later. By then Sari had found a towel and a robe. She had not stayed around after bringing the items in so he was left to do things himself. By then he was pretty much aware of what the things were used for and used the towel to dry himself off then put on the robe. As he knotted it he realized two things. It was pink and it was short. The bottom rested above his knees.

Ah well, he figured. It wasn't like walking around with nothing on was uncomfortable but Sari seemed to freak out when he did. He still didn't see what the big deal was. Were clothes _that_ important? Oh course if Sari was around he wasn't going to walk in front of her in what she called "his birthday suit". He was too considerate for that. Since she was uncomfortable with the idea he would do his best to avoid it. He didn't want to bother her.

But him walking around in a real short robe _would_ bother her. This meant he would have to look for something _else_ to cover himself up before he saw her again. So with that in mind he left the bathroom and made his way down the hall. He wasn't sure where he'd find something to cover himself up but he would.

_Let's just hope I don't run into anybody before then. _He didn't feel comfortable explaining to his comrades about the pink robe, especially Bumblebee who was most likely going to rag him about it.

Too bad for him that's exactly who he wound up encountering first.

The cyber ninja was rounding a corner between the bathroom and the other bots recharge rooms when Bumblebee just so happened to be walking toward him and thought they didn't walk into each other bot spotted the the pink robed techno organic human rather easily. As soon as the younger bot saw him his mouth turned down in a frown... until he saw what he was wearing.

Then his expression became comical.

"What's that, Prowl?" Bee asked, pointing at the pink robe as a mad grin grew on his face. "Pink? You trying to tell me something?"

Prowl frowned and self consciously tightened the belt on the skimpy pink robe. "I have no idea what you're talking about," he snapped.

"That little pink thing," Bee replied, still grinning. "It doesn't really look good on you."

"I'm only wearing it because my clothes are dirty," Prowl informed him. "Sari dropped it off for me. How was I supposed to know what color it was, not that it's any of your business anyway."

Bumblebee's face scrunched up as if he was holding in laughter. "Nice legs," he cracked then completely broke down, falling over himself with laughter. "_I feel pretty, oh so pretty."_

Prowl frowned at him but didn't bother kicking him like he usually would have done. If he'd tried it he would have hurt his own foot. Instead he chose to ignore the young Autobot's taunts and continue his search. He walked past the cackling Bumblebee and proceeded down the hall.

* * *

Meanwhile Sari had returned to the bathroom. In her hands she carried Prowl's clothing. "Hey, Prowl, I-" she stopped talking when she discovered that the room was empty. "Prowl?"

Suddenly a horrible thought came to her mind. _He's running around __**naked**__! I've got to find him before he goes outside and gets arrested for indecent exposure!_

Not noticing that the robe she'd brought in with the towels was gone as well, she ducked out of the room and ran down the hall.

A few minutes later she came upon the cackling Bumblebee. He was laughing his head off and kept repeating the words to a really corny song about being pretty while pounding on the floor with his feet and fists. "What's so funny?" she asked him when she drew near.

Bee looked at her and calmed down somewhat. "Hey, Sari."

"What's so funny?" she persisted.

"Oh nothing really," he giggled. "Just Prowl walking around in a little pink robe. HAHAHAAAAAA!"

"Pink robe?" she pressed but it did little good. He was too far gone.

She shook her head and walked past him. _Well at least Prowl's not walking around in the nude. Even if a robe isn't any better. _

* * *

"Ratchet?"

The medic looked up from repairing the scanner to find Prowl standing in the doorway wearing nothing but Sari's pink robe. "Uh.. yeah?" he said a little uncertainly.

"Do you happen to know where I can find something to uh.. cover myself better?" the cyber ninja asked.

"Huh?"

"You know, clothes," he explained. "Sari gets nervous when I don't wear anything and I don't want to make her uncomfortable and well..."

"Sorry, kid, I can't help you there," the medic said. "Where are the things you were wearing before?"

"In the wash," he replied.

"Oh." The older robot pointed at the pink robe. "Where'd you get that thing to be with?"

"Sari left it for me but it's not very..." his voice trailed off.

"Oh well I don't know what to tell ya," he said. "We don't have any of those things... you'll just have to wait until you are clean.." he pointed at something on the floor. "Unless you wanna put that thing on?"

Prowl turned his head. He spotted what looked like a large burlap sack covered in grease lying on the floor near the medic's feet. "I guess it will have to do." he started toward it.

Ratchet watched him with a small smile. "I don't get it," he said. "Why do humans feel they have to wear so much stuff anyway?"

"I don't know. I don't get it either," Prowl told him. "All I know is that Sari said if people walked around like that they would get arrested for something called indecent exposure."

"Indecent exposure?" Ratchet asked. "Like walking around with your chest plate hanging open?"

Prowl shrugged. "I guess." he said. "Though I don't know anyone who would be dumb enough to try that."

Now Ratchet grinned. "I know a few people who would."

Prowl made a face then reached down to grab the sack.

"Don't you dare!" a voice shouted behind him, making him jump.

He turned around and spotted Sari standing in the doorway, her arms folded and a frown on her face. "Sari!" he exclaimed.

"Yeah, it's me," she replied, crossing the door. "What do you think you're doing?"

He felt he had to defend himself. "Well for one thing the robe doesn't exactly cover me completely and since you said you're uncomfortable with me walking around naked I was trying to find something better to wear that this." he pointed at the pink robe.

"You can't wear that _thing_!" she exclaimed, indicating the sack. "It'll just make you dirty again and then you'll have to take another shower." she held something up. "Besides I have your clothes right here."

He stared at the articles of cloth in her hand. "How did you get them cleaned so quickly?"

She made a nervous face. "It's better if you don't know." she thrust them into his hands. "But, since they're both clean and dry, I suggest you put them on."

Prowl complied instantly. Sari turned away so she wouldn't see anyway, though by then she'd seen enough and her face started growing hot. She noticed Ratchet watching with an amused look on his face. "What?" she demanded.

He looked away. "Oh nothing."

* * *

The ship exited hyperspace and came to a smooth stop at the outer rim of the solar system. Megatron stared out the large windshield and watched Pluto slowly make its way around the ruling star. From the back of the galaxy, far from Earth and further than most of the satellites could reach Pluto wasn't as small as people thought it was. Yes it was tiny compared to the rest but it wasn't the size of Earth's moon. It was closer to the size of Mercury.

The humans insisted it wasn't a planet but Megatron knew differently. It was a planet, an important one. Without it things would spiral into chaos. Thinking of Pluto made him think about Optimus and his team. While the Prime was the leader, the more powerful, and smaller character was somebody else. Without that someone the others just weren't as strong. With that one being out of the equation things would become easier to deal with.

Megatron's smirked. Without the Prime's Pluto things were going to get chaotic for them. _I am looking forward to it. _

_A/N_

_Starscream called her "sister" because it's a common word people use even if the girl they are talking to is not their sister. _

_I used the shower suggestion but I draw the line at Sari having to wash him. He might be a little ignorant in human stuff but he's not an invalid. By the way the reason he's not really bothered about walking around naked is because as a former robot he didn't really wear clothes to begin with. _

_I realized that some of the lightheartedness of this fic was waning so this chapter has quite a bit in it just to keep things going. I can't keep it serious. It wasn't meant to be a completely serious fic._

_Okay let me get this off my chest. Growing up Pluto was a planet. In my science it was labeled as such. Now I don't care what the scientists say Pluto will always be a planet to me. Yes my Pluto size logic is flawed. But we have never gotten close enough to really measure it... awe forget it._

_Don't ask how Sari got Prowl's clothes clean so quickly. I'm not telling. _


	20. Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

_The next morning.........._

Prowl was up earlier than anybody else. While that wasn't unusual this morning if anyone had seen him they would have wondered. He'd been sleeping peacefully at the trunk of his tree when a sudden urgency jerked him out of his sleep. The cyber ninja sat up, breathing heavily and looked around for anything that could have caused it. He saw nothing, just his otherwise empty room.

It was a nice, normal, summer morning complete with birdsong and crickets.

But even with the quiet and the singing of birds the feeling wouldn't go away. His heart hammered against his chest and a voice kept screaming. _Go! Go! Go! _

Without knowing why, he got going, standing up and running out of the room as if Decepticons were chasing him. He ran past his comrades recharge rooms without a single glance and dashed outside where his bike waited.

He quickly unchained it and climbed on, inserting the key and bringing it to life with a roar. He took off down the street at speeds a tad above legal. While keeping his eyes on the road to avoid a collision with people heading to their places of employment he reached into his pants pocket and pulled out the cell phone Sari had given him the way before.

_You can't call her. She won't be happy to be woken up so early in the morning. It's a bad idea. _

_But itf it's bad why do I feel like I have to do it?_

Against his own convictions he flipped it open and pressed speed dial.

* * *

A ringing phone woke Sari from a deep sleep. Groaning, she flopped her hand around, attempting to find it. Finally her hand closed around the cell phone on her night stand. Half asleep she flipped it open and pressed the Talk button. "Hello?" she said sleepily.

"Sari?" it was Prowl's voice.

"Prowl?" now she was more awake. She pushed herself into a sitting position. "You'd better have a good excuse for waking me up this early in the morning!"

"I do," he told her, ignoring her tone.

_He does? _"Well what is it?"

"I can't discuss it over the phone. Can you meet me at the entrance of the tower in ten minutes?"

_No! _a voice in her head yelled. Sari almost said it out loud. After the whole robe and shower incident yesterday, meeting Prowl alone made her nervous. But how was she going to tell him that? If she tried to tell him, he'd only ask questions and she couldn't very well explain herself without confusing him further. She sighed. _I guess I don't really have a choice. _

"All right. I'll be right down."

* * *

Slipstream had to find a way to contact Megatron without Starscream knowing. It had been days since she'd last given him an update and she didn't want him to think that she was doing it on purpose. Who was she kidding? He probably thought she was already since their conversation had been cut off halfway through.

Even though Megatron and Starscream both were unreliable she'd rather be under Megatron's authority than her so-called fathers. She did not want to tick him off especially since he'd be back on the planet soon. Even though she unintentionally had already.

_I'll have to explain what happened when he gets here if he gives me a chance. _

But how was she going to contact Megatron with Starscream constantly monitoring the computers? It was almost like he sensed what she wanted to do and was determined to keep her from doing it. That might be it. Starscream might be a jerk but he wasn't an idiot.

If he was smart enough to figure out why Megatron was talking to her to begin with he was smart enough to figure out that she needed to contact him and prevent it. He obviously didn't want Megatron to know he was alive until he chose to reveal the fact himself.

She already knew why. He wanted to surprise Megatron. Most likely make another attempt to take him out. _Why should he bother? It's pointless. _

She glanced over at the other seeker who stood before the control console, doing something she couldn't quite figure out. She saw the grin on his face and figured that whatever it was it wasn't anything good. She wondered what he was doing.

Casually she sauntered over to get a better look. Starscream seemed to sense her approach and exited the program. He turned his head and glared at her. "Something you want?" he demanded.

"Not from you," she shot back.

"Then would you kindly go back to your corner?" he made a shooing motion with his hand. "You're disrupting my train of thought."

She glared at him. "You don't tell me what to do!" she snapped. "I am not your slave!"

"But you are in my way," he informed her. "I can't get anything done with your hovering."

"I _wasn't_ hovering!"

The look he gave her said otherwise.

She opened her mouth to retort but just then a light on the console started flashing. Starscream turned his attention back to the screen and pulled up a program. Before Slipstream could look, he turned off the screen and looked at her. He grinned. "It looks like we have visitors."

He stood and grabbed her arm in a viselike grip. "Come. Let us get ready. We have to make our guests comfortable.."

* * *

Megatron sent Barricade out first when Strika's ship landed on the moon. When Megatron's conversation with Slipstream had been cut off a few days ago and she hadn't bothered calling back Megatron had grown suspicious. He couldn't quite figure out why she'd cut the feed but he knew how to find out. If she had done it just to be smart he could forgive it. If she had another more sinister reasons for it he wouldn't be so merciful. It was bad enough Starscream had betrayed if. If she followed in her creators footsteps....

Before he headed to Earth he decided to take a little detour and see what the femme was up to. If he found out she was plotting behind his back he would take care of her as soon as possible and eliminate a potential threat.

Because he had no intention of being her first victim, if that was how it would play out, he'd chosen Barricade to go before him. One reason was because he was expendable. If the Autobot traitor was killed Megatron wouldn't be losing anyone important. Another reason was if Barricade was able to take her down and live he would prove him worth and Megatron would replace that empty space on his chest with the Decepticon insignia.

No matter which way it went, Megatron could gain something by it.

Barricade moved carefully over the lunar surface to the ruin of what had once been the greatest Decepticon warship in the galaxy. Now it was less than an empty, gutted shell. He gave it a quick scan before he got to close, attempting to pick up the energy signature from the female named Slipstream. To his surprise he picked up not one but _two _energy signatures from inside.

_Odd... I thought only one of Starscream's clones was left behind. _

He reached the entrance to the _Nemesis _and carefully poked his head inside. The hall was dark and quiet but that didn't mean he was alone. The femme and whoever was with her might be on the other side of the far corner, lying in wait for anyone stupid enough to think they could just waltz right in. If there was one thing the police-bot wasn't, it was stupid.

He checked the power setting on his blaster then put his head in through the doorway. Something flickered near the end of the hall and he fired. Whatever it was exploded when the bolt of plasma hit it. He thought he heard a yelp as well but couldn't be sure. He fired again and this time he was rewarded with a loud birdlike shriek and then a muted stream of curses.

Yes, somebody had been waiting for him. He smirked. _Not today. I have no intention of going offline. _He glanced back at the _Darksyde _where he knew Megatron was hiding like a coward, waiting for him to do all the work or die trying, then stepped into the ship and walked down the hall, feeling more confident. The enemies element of surprise had been ruined and now he could not take the police-bot out so easily.

_I always wanted to go against you, Starscream. _he thought. _Aside from Megatron you were always the one I most wanted to take down. _he grinned. _Now I'll have a chance, even though it's only a clone._

_

* * *

_

Sari was waiting outside the tower when Prowl pulled up to the door. She opened her mouth to ask him a question but he cut her off with a quick order. "Get on."

Wondering what this was all about and knowing that if she argued with him he would just get angry she complied. She descended the few stairs between the building and the parking lot then climbed onto the motorcycle. Prowl instantly pulled away from the entrance and onto the road.

"Mind telling me what this is about?" she asked when they were on the road.

"I don't know myself," he replied, not taking his eyes off the road. "I woke up this morning with a sense of urgency. I don't know what is wrong exactly but whatever it is it's bad. We need to be ready for it."

_A feeling of urgency? _"Did you tell the others about this?" she wanted to know.

"No," he answered honestly.

"What?!" she stared at the back of his head with wide eyes. "Why not?"

When he replied he sounded sheepish. "It didn't cross my mind," he replied. "The feeling woke me up with the urgent need to get moving." he turned slightly and looked at her, though his driving wasn't impaired at all, thanks to his ability to unify with vehicles. "Waking the others never even crossed my mind."

"Yet waking me up did," she prompted. If she wasn't riding on the bike she would have folded her arms and given him a Look. "Excuse me if I find that hard to believe."

His expression turned helpless. "I don't know what else to tell you, Sari."

"Fine forget it," she looked him right in the eyes. "Why don't we head back to the plant and tell them about it right now?"

He nodded. "Yes, we should do that," he agreed. "It would not be right if I did not tell them what was going on. They need to know. Especially if what I am feeling is Decepticon related."

* * *

Barricade crept stealthily down the halls of the scrapped _Nemesis._ His training that he hadn't used in stellar cycles was coming back to him and filled him with a sense of acceleration. It felt great to be on the field again, even if the only reason he was there was to get killed. _Not if I can help it! _

He saw a door up ahead and headed for it, his nerves on edge and his blaster held steady, index finger resting on the trigger. When he reached the door he stood with his back against the wall, his blaster raised and ready. He twisted slightly and hit the door with his hand. It let out a high pitched whine as it slowly opened.

He cautiously poked his head into the room and jerked it out the moment a beam of pink energy came at him.

The bolt hit the door and knocked it off its hinges but missed the Autobot traitor completely. He thought he heard a high pitched laugh that didn't sound the least bit female come from inside the room.

_What?_

_

* * *

_

Slipstream glared at Starscream. His full attention was on the hole where the door had been, his arms raised, guns ready. He was grinning like an idiot and she knew he was enjoying this.

_You moron! You should have waited until he stepped into the room before firing! _She looked back toward the hole. She did not see the black robot anymore but she knew he was still there.

She had never seen that particular robot before she but she knew he was working for Megatron because he'd gotten off the _Darksyde_. Why he'd come out alone she didn't know she she could guess that Megatron had sent him ahead to secure the area. Though it seemed weird that this Decepticon had neither the insignia or the red optics. His were a strange multi-colored hue of blue and purple. She wondered what his story was and how he'd gotten himself messed up with the Decepticon Commander in the first place.

If Starscream had his way she would never be able to ask him.

"He's not going to come back in here if he knows you're waiting for him to poke his head in again," she informed the other seeker.

"Oh, he'll come back in here," he told her. "He has nothing else to do. I have a good view of the hallway. If he moves even the slightest I can take him out." he laughed again. "And believe me, he has to move eventually."

* * *

Barricade was in a fix. He couldn't move without risk being shot but he couldn't just stay where he was like a coward. He would have to do something eventually. Standing there and waiting for something to happen was not an option. Contacting Megatron for help was out of the question. The Decepticon Commander would just tell him "too bad" and besides his commlink had been taken. He was by himself with no help and no plan.

He wracked his processor for an alternative, but nothing came to mind. He was out of ideas and helpless. Just what Megatron had wanted.

_That is right, _he could almost hear the Decepticon Commander saying. _I don't want you to live through this. If you die it won't be of any lose to me. You're expendable. If you want to prove yourself useful then live through it. If you cannot do that, just let her kill you. _

_No! I am not going to die here! I'll prove to him that I'm not a mere toy. I will live through this and either get my insignia back or gain the Decepticon symbol. _

He touched his chest plate and a small compartment opened. Something fell into his hand. A flare grenade. He'd been issued them when he'd been given a job at the stockade. They were used to blind the prisoners if they started acting unruly. As he stared at them an idea began to form. He could put them to good use.

_This should do it._

He jumped in the doorway and threw them just as another bolt of energy sliced through the air and hit him in the chest.

* * *

Prowl and Sari never made it to the plant. The cyber ninja noticed a suspiciously familiar car start tailing them, a few blocks from the base. Not wanting the driver, which he could not see not that it mattered since he knew there wasn't one, knowing where the plant was he changed direction and pulled into a populated area.

"Prowl, where are we going?" Sari asked. She pointed. 'The plant is that way."

He didn't answer her.

"Prowl?"

"Sari, do you trust me?"

_Huh? What's he asking me that for? _"Of course I trust you," she said. "You're one of my best friends."

"Then if I don't tell you what's wrong right now you won't question me?" he pressed.

She hesitated. "I-"

"Will you trust me?" he cut her off.

She noted the urgency in his voice. She sensed something was going on that he wasn't going to tell her. "Yes."

"Then you'll do what I want without asking questions?" the cyber ninja prompted. "You won't try to find out what this is about?"

She said nothing. That was pushing it and they both knew it. If he did not tell her now, she'd find out eventually. The hairs on the back of her neck began to prickle and she glanced over her shoulder. She noticed the strange looking car behind them. It was black and green and had a tinted windshield so she could not see inside. The car gave her a bad feeling. Like the car from the one Stephen King movie. _Christine. _

"Does this have something to do with the car behind us?" she asked, looking ahead. The car's headlights reminded her of eyes and looking at them too long made her nervous.

Prowl gave no reply but that was answer enough.

_Something about that car is upsetting him. _she realized. _He's not afraid of any of the humans because, even in his new body, he can still take care of them. That must mean whatever that car is it's not being driven by a human. _she looked back at it. _It must be a Cybertronian._

She heard the singing sound of metal and looked back at Prowl. When she saw what he was holding her eyes widened. "Where did you get that thing?"

He held a large throwing star. It looked exactly like the ones he used as a robot. But how was he able to have it now? The weapons had been part of his older body. When his robot shell had been laid to rest the weapons had gone with him.

"It was in my room," he replied, the explanation not mysterious at all. "I must have left one there when I was training and forgot about it."

"But why do you..." she stopped in mid question. _Oh. That thing following us is an enemy. That's for if he has to fight it. _

Prowl changed course once again at the end of the block. Sari looked back and saw the large car to the exact same thing. "He's _still_ following us," she said, turning back around.

"I know," he responded, his voice rather calm.

"What are you going to do?"

The hand gripping the star tightened, slightly. "If it comes to it I'll have to take him out."

"Do you think you can do that?" she wondered aloud. How was Prowl going to deal with the robot following them in his new body?

"Don't worry about it. I know his weak points."

* * *

The blast knocked Barricade off his feet and onto the floor. He heard a loud yelp from inside the room then everything went black for a few moments. When his optics began working again he found himself lying on his back. A small sparking hole in his armor told him he was damaged but he didn't know how severely.

Groaning he pushed himself into a sitting position. The sparking damage screamed at him but he ignored it. His blaster lay beside him so he quickly grabbed it up and aimed into the room. He saw something white moving around in there and, taking it to be the target, fired.

He was rewarded with a pained yelp. Encouraged by the sound, he clamored to his feet and lurched forward, ignoring his pain, and charging into the room. Suddenly a green and purple figure loomed in front of him and he had to stop himself from running into it.

It looked a great deal like the pictures of Starscream he'd seen but it had the wrong colors and was curvy. One look at it's face told him this one was female. A ticked off female by the glaring red optics and the turned down look to her mouth.

She aimed a kick at him but he ducked just in time and avoided it. He swung at her face but she was already halfway across the room before he even finished it. She raised her arms and fired her guns at him. The police-bot jerked sideways to escape the blast.

He blindly fired his own gun. The femm-bot moved but wasn't fast enough to avoid it. The blast hit her in the leg. She grunted and fell to the floor.

Seeing his chance, Barricade raised the gun and fired at the downed femme. One blast hit her in the chest but before he could fire another something hit him from behind and knocked him to the floor.

He landed on his stomach. Groaning, he tried to get back up but a foot came down on his back and pushed him down. He saw his blaster laying beside him and tried to grab it. A energy weapon came down into his face. "If you want to keep your spark intact I would advise leaving that where it is."

_A/N_

_Cliffhanger! NAHAHAHA!_


	21. Chapter 21

CHAPTER 21

Sari was flying before she even knew what had happened. One minute she was sitting on the back of the bike, holding onto Prowl with white knuckled hands, the next she was being sent rocketing into the air. Then she was falling. She instantly put out her arms to protect herself. Something grabbed onto the back of her dress and her position changed as an arm wrapped around her waist. Whoever had grabbed her, landed first, grunting on impact.

She opened her eyes to blue sky and something soft under her. She lifted her head and saw Prowl's bike lying on the pavement. It was scratched and the handle bars were bent but was otherwise in one piece. She did not see the her friend.

Her blue eyes scanned the area for the cyber ninja. "Prowl?"

The soft thing under her moved. The arm around her waist fell away and something pushed her into a sitting position. She looked over her shoulder. Prowl was behind her, looking scratched up but in one piece. He'd broken her fall with his own body.

"Are you all right?" she asked him.

But there was no time to answer. He got up quickly, ignoring his injuries which were minor and grabbed her arm. "Let's go!"

He started running, practically dragging her along. She heard the sound of tires squealing behind her and realized why he was running away. She glanced behind them and saw the car had given chase.

"Prowl-" she began.

He jerked on her arm and she nearly tripped over herself as they rounded the side of a house, Sari could hear the car gaining on them with each step.

_What is this about? _she wondered. _Why is this guy trying to kill us?_

Prowl yanked on her arm and pulled her into somebodies yard. As he did so, he threw the large star he'd been carrying. It smashed into the grill of the cars engine, creating a shower of sparks. The car stalled. Prowl yanked back with his hand and the star came loose. It flew back into his hand as if he'd called it there.

"How did you do that?" Sari asked him.

He shrugged. "I don't know," he said, honestly. "It just did."

"At least you took care of him," the girl said, looking back at the car.

Prowl's response was not encouraging. "Not even in the least."

She looked back at him just as the car started making strange noises.

* * *

Barricade stared up the length of the blaster until he was staring into the face of its owner. He saw it was a seeker in red, light gray, and blue colors. Its face looked familiar but he had no idea who this was. For all he knew it could be another clone. He didn't know how many Starscream had made. _Megatron said that there was only supposed to be one! _

"Who are you?" he demanded.

The seeker frowned as if the question annoyed him. "What kind of question is that?" he responded. "It should be obvious! What other Decepticon had take out an Autobot by himself without help?"

"Megatron," the police-bot replied instantly.

Obviously not liking that answer, the seeker kicked him. "Besides Megatron, you Autobot idiot."

Cade felt he should correct him. "I am not an Autobot."

"You're not?" the jet-bot kicked him in the side and flipped him onto his back. "Because you're obviously not a Decepticon. What else is there if you are not an Autobot?"

The answer hurt to say. "An Empty."

"An Em-" the word stopped him. Suddenly the seeker started laughing. "Oh, you're one of _those_!" he kicked the police-bot's gun across the room. "That explains why Megatron sent you in here. You're expendable." He knelt down and looked him right in the optics. "Tell me, how does it feel to know that your very existence does not mean a thing?

Barricade gave no answer. His silence said more than any words could.

The seeker laughed again and straightened up. "You see," he went on. "You're nothing to him. He sent you in here, knowing you would be killed and he figured you might just kill my dear daughter over there in the process."

The black robot's optics flashed. _Daughter?_

"Kind of like what the humans call killing two birds with one stone. The femme kills you while you kill the femme. Boom! Good bye to both problems."

"You don't know that," Barricade snapped.

The seeker looked at him with a pitying expression. "Of course I do," he told him. "I spent ten million stellar cycles watching it happen over and over."

Barricade stared at him as realization dawned. "You mean..."

"I am Starscream." the seeker smirked. "Couldn't recognize me could you?" he shrugged. "No matter. You're not the one I want to impress anyway." He raised his blaster. "Well anyway. Say hello to Primus for me."

* * *

Lockdown was transforming. This was bad. If the bounty hunter was going into robot mode it meant only one thing. Trouble.

_He is after something. _Prowl realized ans this time the answer came easily. _Me! He lied to me before! Why else would he be here now?!_ The cyber ninja grabbed Sari's arm and pulled her toward him. She yelped in surprise. "Ow! Prowl! You're hurting me!"

Ignoring her he turned away and started running again. Behind him he heard Lockdown finish transforming. It would only be moments before he gave chase. _But he's not going to catch us so easily!_

Prowl reached the end of the block, turned, and took off down the deserted, early morning street.

* * *

Optimus Prime finished the retelling whole story for the twentieth time. He had told it so much he knew every detail and could repeat it in stasis. He was getting tired of reciting the same things over and over but the council kept asking him the same questions in hopes of jarring his memory and making him either remember a detail he forgot or trip him up and cause him to make himself look guilty of something. The only thing they were accomplishing was giving him a processor ache and a mild case of sleep deprivation.

Maybe they figured a tired Prime was more likely to implement himself but Optimus wasn't messing up he was only getting more and more frustrated. Why did they want him to keep repeating himself about the events following Megatron's arrest? Did they think he knew something else?

It seemed like they blamed him for Megatron getting free instead of the one actually responsible. The Prime had done his job even if nobody thought he could. He was a hero even if it wasn't in his programing.

"Tell me again," Alpha Trion said, leaning forward in his seat. "The whole time you traveled from Earth to Cyberron Megatron didn't say a word to you?"

Optimus nodded. "He refused to talk to anyone," he replied for the twentieth time that day. "He did not speak and he refused to take in any energon."

"And you're sure he didn't say a word to you or your crew?"

"I am positive," Optimus answered. "The rest of my crew never entered the cells."

"**What are Prowl?" **

The question surprised Optimus. He turned to face the speaker. Perceptor. All during the interrogation the scientist had said nothing. He had just listened with his usual stoic expression. The Prime wondered why he had spoken up now and why it had been such a strange question. "At the time Prowl was dead," the younger Autobot told him. "There was no way he could have spoken to Megatron."

"**That is what you believe**," the scientist told him. "**But you do not know how long he was in the form he has now. He could have been techno organic for much longer than he has led you to believe."**

"If he was like that sooner he would not have hidden it from us," Optimus told him. "Prowl too was surprised by his new body. He seemed confused and scared the first time I saw him. I don't believe he was acting."

Perceptor was insistent. "**But you do not know."**

_But I do. Prowl was never a very good actor. You should hear his attempt at fake static. _"Prowl would not lie about such a thing," Optimus responded. "Besides, why would he want to speak with Megatron anyway?"

"That is something I believe we should ask him."

_Why do you want to talk to him? You were there when we had his funeral. He didn't come back to life until after that. _

Optimus studied Perceptor's face but the scientists expression told him nothing. _Just what are you implying?_

* * *

Barricade braced himself for the blast, shutting off his optics so he wouldn't see the shot that killed him. He knew there was no way he was getting out of this alive unless Primus intervened or he thought of something in a split second. Nothing. This was it. _I deserve it. I never should have been so stupid as to get involved with Megatron in the first place._

He heard the blaster charge up but the fatal shot never discharged. He heard a scuffle then a yelp. _Huh? _

Relighting his optics he saw the female Starscream clone grasping Starscream's arm and aiming the cannon at the ceiling. The lighter colored seeker was fighting against her, trying to feet his arm.

Barricade saw his chance and dived for his blaster. He grabbed it up quickly and fired at both seekers. The blast hit Starscream in the back. He roared in pain then managed to shove the fembot away. He twisted around to fire at the police-bot but never accomplished it. Barricade dived into him, knocking him to the floor.

Meanwhile Slipstream had gotten back to her feet. She crossed the room and kicked out at the mechs. The blow hit Barricade, knocking him off Starscream. Then, ignoring the police-bot entirely, she raised her arm cannons and fired them both at her creator. The shots hit him square in the chest but did little.

He got up and faced her, his optics flashing in anger. " Why you insolent wench! You'll pay for that!"

He raised his arms to fire his cannons at her.

That's when Barricade remembered that he still had a pair of stasis cuffs. He quickly whipped them out and charged at Starscream. Before the seeker knew what was happening the police-bot slapped one of them onto his wrist. The cuffs sent a charge through his frame. Starscream tried to fight him off but Barricade ignored the blows and managed to slap the other one on.

Starscream fell to the floor with a thud, offline for now.

Problem taken care of, Barricade sighed with relief and nearly collapsed but before he could, he remembered the fembot he'd been sent in to take care of. He looked up at her. She stared back at him, looking shocked. For a moment neither said anything.

Slipstream was the first to speak. "I guess you're expecting a thank you."

He stared back at her then shook his head. "No," he replied. "Decepticons never thank any one."

She smirked. "You know more about Decepticons than I do." she walked over to him. "I was going to thank you but then again thanks isn't required since I too tried to kill you and I didn't save you before, because I cared about you. I just saved you because I knew after Starscream killed you he'd kill me and I figured I could use you as a distraction."

Barricade didn't look surprised. "As I said Decepticons never thank any one."

* * *

Sari head thunderous footsteps behind them as the two techno organic humans ran down the street. Prowl jerked on her arm and took her down an alley. Then, before she could get her bearings he opened a door in the side of a building and yanked her inside. The room was dark and cold. She had no idea where they were, but if she could guess they were in a meat locker.

Outside she heard the robot pause then stomp by. Prowl sighed with relief.

"Prowl, what is going on?" she demanded, turning to face him. Now that they weren't being chased she was going to get to the bottom of this. She raised her hand and created an orb.

Prowl was standing a short distance away, panting. He looked at her when she brought the light closer. Something about his expression told her this was serious.

"Prowl," she said again. "Would you mind telling me what this is about?"

"I was hoping you wouldn't get involved." he said, not looking at her.

"Well I am so spill it." she crossed the room and stood beside him. "Who was that robot and why did he try to kill us?"

"His name is Lockdown," Prowl replied. "I've dealt with him a few times before. He's a bounty hunter."

"Bounty hunter?" she remembered that the Autobots had mentioned that 'd said something about a robot with no real fraction who could be bought by the highest bidder. "Is he the guy who tried to convince you to work for him?"

Prowl nodded.

"And you turned him down." she looked toward the door. "Wow he must be real sore about it if he's trying to kill you."

Prowl felt the need to correct her. "That's not why he'd after me."

"Then why?" she asked, looking back at him. "If he doesn't want to kill you why else would he be after you?"

"I'm not sure," he said honestly. "He told me before that he wasn't after me the last time I had a run in with him. Burt now I don't think he was telling the truth."

"Wait. The _last time_ you had a run in with him?" she looked him right in the face. "When was that?"

"About a week ago."

Sari stared at him. Now she understood. "So that's why you haven't been at the plant very often lately," she replied. "You've been trying to find him."

He refused to look at her but did nod. "I thought if I found him I'd be able to force him to tell me what he's up to." he looked toward the door. "Now with this, I know. He is after me."

"Why would he be after you/"

"I don't know. But it's the only scenario that fits."

"Or you're just being paranoid."

He shook his head. "No, I'm not being paranoid." he walked past her toward the door. "Something has happened. When I confronted him he said I wasn't what he was after but he would not tell me the true reason he came back." he looked back at her. "Lockdown doesn't come to Earth unless he's after something. So there are two reasons he's after me now." here he held up his hand and ticked off the reasons. "One; he lied and really is after me for some reason or two; he was following us so he could find out where the plant is because he wants to capture all of us at once."

"Why would he want to capture you guys?" she wanted to know.

He shrugged and shook his head. "I am not sure," he admitted. "Either he's looking for revenge, which I doubt, or he was paid by Megatron to do it."

Sari looked doubtful. "I don't think so."

"How do you mean?"

"Well for one thing Megatron wants to deal with you guys himself," she replied. "and for another I think he wants to best you all while you're able to fight. If you guys were confined or something he would take away from the accomplishment. He might feel cheated."

Prowl said nothing. He hadn't thought of that. "So that means Lockdown isn't trying to find the plant."

"Which means your first guess was right," she replied. "Or it's the only idea we have right now that fits."

That didn't make the cyber ninja feel any better. If Megatron wasn't the one who'd hired Lockdown who had?

* * *

Slipstream noticed the police-bot's chest damage. "You might want somebody to look at that," she pointed out flatly.

Barricade looked at the damage. He saw his armor was cracked but no exposed sparking wires. "It's not as bad as it looks." he pushed past her and headed toward the control console. "It doesn't even hurt."

The femme watched him sit down in the chair and fire up the console. She frowned, fighting the temptation to hit him. She held herself back because she had an idea why he was going to use it and she hoped that if he did use it for that purpose that her life would be saved. _I wonder what he plans to tell him?_

* * *

"Megatron! Look!" Strika's voice exclaimed.

The Decepticon Commander lifted his head just as the screen blinked on. He found himself staring into Barricades purple tinted optics. "Megatron," the police-bot said.

"Barricade," Megatorn greeted him in a flat voice. "You're alive."

"Yes," the black colored transformer confirmed. "I am. I was able to deal with the problem here." _No thanks to you._

The Decepticon Supreme Commander looked mildly surprised. "You took out the femme?"

Cade shook his head. "Negative," he answered. "But it turns out _she_ wasn't the problem. "

"What do you mean?"

Barricade looked at something the Decepticon couldn't see. "I think I'll let you see it for yourself."

* * *

Sari poked her head out of the room. "I think the coast is clear," she said, looking back at Prowl. "I don't see that crazy bounty hunter anywhere."

Prowl grabbed her hand. "Then let's get out of here," he said. "We have to let the others know he's here. I should have said something before but-'"

"You wanted to take care of it yourself," Sari finished, smirking. "Yeah, that's typical for you."

He smiled slightly then stepped out of the building, looking both ways uin case Sari missed something.. "We'd better be going," he said after a moment. "Hopefully my motorcycle is still in working order."

They started for the street, moving quickly in case Lockdown came back. Prowl glanced over his shoulder but didn't see the bounty hunter anywhere. Relief began to course through him. Maybe Lockdown had lost them after all.

_No. This is too easy. It almost feels like it was planned..._

The walk back took less time than it had taken to run away. Maybe because there wasn't a crazy green muscle car chasing after them this time. The pair reached the street where Prowl had ditched the bike only a few short minutes later. It still lay where he'd put it. "There is is, Prowl!" Sari exclaimed, pointing. She yanked on his arm. "Come on!"

He let her lead him toward it, feeling uneasy all of a sudden. _Yes, this feels way to easy._

He and Sari had almost reached the bike when a voice spoke up behind them. "Going somewhere, Prowl?"

_A/N_

_I finally came up with a reason for Lockdown being there. Strangely is wasn't what I first intended but it seemed like a good idea anyway. Next chapter... FUN!_


	22. Chapter 22

CHAPTER 22

Prowl twisted around just as Lockdown came barreling down on them. Out of reflex the cyber ninja pushed off the pavement and shot into the air, taking Sari with him because he had a firm grip on her hand. Her eyes bugged out as they rocketed over Lockdown's head and landed on the roof of a building.

"How did you do that?" she asked him when he let her go.

Her friend was just as surprised as she was. "I don't know," he replied. "Maybe it's a new ability."

Before she could comment the building began to shake. "Whoa!" Sari exclaimed, pin wheeling her arms to keep her balance. "What's going on?"

Prowl lost his balance and nearly feel off the roof. He grabbed the edge just in time and avoid falling to his death. He looked over his shoulder and spotted Lockdown standing below, hitting the building with his fist.

"Lockdown!" he yelled.

The bounty hunter stopped and looked up at him. "Hello, Prowl," he said, grinning. "Why don't you come down and play?"

He hit the wall once more, this time with more force. Prowl was unable to hold on. His grip loosened and he fell.

* * *

Megatron couldn't help feeling suspicious as he and Team Charge made their way to the control room in the _Nemesis_. The Autobot traitor hadn't been very descriptive when he'd given his report and that seemed strange. What exactly was he up to, if he was up to anything?

The Decepticon tightened his on the twin swords he was holding. If the black transformer tried anything he would be ready for it.

_You'd better not be trying to pull something, for you sake. _

Megatron was not going to let another person betray him and get away with it. He'd made that mistake once, he wasn't going to do it again.

_Or you'll end up like Starscream. A gray pile of scrap metal on the ground. _

By then the group had reach the door to the control room. Megatron stopped so the rest of them did too. "Cyclonus," the Commander said, turning toward the other Decepticons. "Go on ahead and make sure it's secure."

The dark purple robot nodded, walking forward and unsheathing his own swords. He stepped toward the blown out door and cautiously poked his head inside. Then, without looking back, he disappeared into the room.

Megatron and the others waited. If they heard gun fire or sounds of a struggle they would charge into the room and take out the the police-bot. Oil Slick was secretly hoping for some kind of confrontation. He was still angry about the incident with the fear gas and he was waiting for a chance to pay Barricade back.

His revenge would have to wait, though. A few minutes later Cyclonus exited the room and walked over to Megatron. By the look on his face he could tell that everything seemed to be just fine. "Where is the Empty?" Megatron asked him.

"Right here," a voice spoke up before the horned Decepticon could reply.

The Decepticon Commander took his attention off Cyclonus and looked toward the door. The police-bot stood in the doorway with his arms folded and a rather comfortable look on his face.

"Barricade," Megatron said, locking optics with him. "You have some nerve to think you can summon me when I can decide whether you live or die."

The black robot didn't look the least bit bothered by his statement. "I could not chance leaving the ship," he told him. "Not unless I wanted to risk_ him _getting away."

Megatron looked confused. "Him?"

Barricade smirked then turned back toward the room. "Come inside. You will want to see this for yourself."

* * *

Time seemed to stand still as Prowl plummeted toward the pavement. Above him he saw Sari, her face full of horror, leaning over the side of the building calling to him. Below Lockdown waited for him.

_Is this how it's going to be? _He found himself thinking. _I was brought back to life just to be killed by falling off a building?! _He clenched his teeth together. _No! I won't let it end like that! I haven't done anything!_

He twisted around until he was facing the bounty hunter. He saw a look of sick expectation on the older robots face. Prowl glared at him. _Not today. I won't allow you to win this time!_

He put out his hands and grabbed onto a flagpole sticking out of the building. His arms jarred painfully but he held on tight. Below he heard Lockdown curse and looked back down at him.

The bounty hunter was still pretty far away but if he wanted to he could reach up and grab the techno organic cyber ninja. Prowl, determined to avoid such a thing, hoisted himself onto the pole and jumped away. His destination was an open window in the building next to it. He didn't land in the room but he was able to grab the ledge, though he smacked painfully into the wall and heard a crunching sound in his nose.

Ignoring the stabbing pain that suddenly shot through his face he pulled himself up and into the room. To his relieve it was empty and the apartment looked like it hadn't been lived in for awhile. He absently wiped at his nose. Pinkish-red blood came off onto his hand. he stared at it in fascination.

The building shook as if something heavy had run into it, jarring him out of his revere. he put of his hand to keep his balance. Lockdown had followed him and was trying to get him out.

"Come on, Prowl," he heard the bounty hunter say from outside. "You'll make things easier if you just come out."

The robot turned human ignored the the older robot and ran toward the stairs. As he went, he mentally kicked himself for losing his weapon. When Lockdown had knocked him off the building he'd dropped it. He could have really used it right then.

_Sparks!_

He reached the stairwell and took them two at a time. As he ran he felt the building vibrate with blows. The bounty hunter had his full attention focused on the cyber ninja.

_If he's only interested in me that means Sari's all right. _he found himself thinking. _I hope she was smart enough to get out of here. _ That thought made him smirk. _Who am I kidding? Sari wouldn't just run away from danger. She's probably thinking up a way to take him out. _

Prowl felt a panicky feeling rise in his chest. _Id she does that she's likely to get hurt! Lockdown's not a slow Rock Lord. There's no way she'll be able to take him out by herself!_ _Lockdown could kill her!_

He couldn't let that happen. He had to make sure Sari didn't do anything stupid.

The exit was at the bottom of the stairs. He jumped down the rest of them and dashed for the door, off balance but too worried to care.

His entire body hit the door at once and he stumbled out onto the sidewalk.

* * *

Megatron followed Barricade into the control room, his nerves on edge and his fists clenched tightly on the handles of his twin swords. If this was a trap the Autobot traitor would pay dearly for his deception.

Barricade was walking rather calmly, as if he didn't think there was anything Megatron should be worried about or was it because he was planning something and the thought made him feel good? _You'd better not be thinking of trying anything._

The black colored Autobot stopped by the control panel and looked at something on the floor. "There," he said, pointing. "This is what I wanted you to see."

Megatron walked cautiously over to the spot then looked where Barricade indicated. What he saw surprised him more than he let on. "Is this some kind of a joke?" he demanded of the police-bot.

Barricade shook his head. "No, sir," he replied. "This is exactly what it looks like."

The Decepticon Commander focused his attention on the figure on the floor once again. "Starscream," he said. "So you've cheated death one more time."

Barricade did not comment. He too stared at the former Decepticon Second in command. He had heard from Optimus Prime's team of space bridge workers that Starscream had died when his AllSpark fragment had been forcibly ripped out of his head when the cyber ninjas Jazz and Prowl had used processor over matter to complete the All Spark. It was obvious by the looked on Megatron's face that he too heard the story. But if Starscream was dead how was he here now alive and kicking and how come his colors had changed?

"What do you intend to do with him, sir?" Barricade wanted to know.

"Why should you care?" the Decepticon demanded.

The police-bot shrugged. "I was just wondering," he said a little defensively.

"That does not concern you," Megatron informed him, stepping toward Starscream's body. The seeker was still offline since there was no all spark fragment in his head to repair him easily. The large gray robot stood over him for a moment then, surprising Barricade and the other Decepticons who had come in by then, kicked the jet-bot in the side. "Wake up, you poor excuse for a transformer!"

The kick was so powerful Starscream's body shot across the room and slammed into the wall. He bounced off it and crashed to the floor. Barricade couldn't help flinching. He knew from experience how painful that was. The seeker grunted in response then his optics flashed on and he lifted his head.

Starscream's red optics focused instantly on Megatron. "Well, well, well, if it isn't my old pal Megatron," he said, grinning despite his predicament. He twisted his head sideways and spotted Barricade. "It looks like you got yourself a new toy to play with."

"Mute your vocalizer, Starscream," Megatron responded, his voice showing absolutely no emotion. "I find your poor attempt at getting under my plating tedious."

"Tedious? Oooh that's a new one," the seeker taunted. "Have you been reading the vocabulary files again?"

Megatron clenched his teeth. If there was one transformer that could annoy him it was Starscream. "Spare me the insults," he ground out. "you are in no place to be acting so high and mighty." He looked at the other Decepticons.

Cyclonus and Oil Slick stepped forward. They crossed the room and grabbed Starscream up. He looked at them both then back at Megatron. He was still grinning.

The next minute Megatron punched him hard in the stomach. Starscream gasped in surprise then crumbled, hunching over in agony. If not for the other two Decepticons he would have fallen on the floor.

"Get him out of here," the Decepticon Commander ordered. "I will think of what to do with him later."

The Decepticons took him away. Megatron turned back to Barricade. "Now that you've surprised me why don't you explain this to me?"

"I can explain it better," Slipstream said, coming out of the shadows. "But only if you promise not to kill me afterward."

* * *

Optimus Prime was allowed to leave the council chambers a half hour later. He was feeling tired and needed to recharge but all thoughts of that vanished when Perceptor exited the room and headed down the hall in a rather hurried pace.

_Where's he going in such a hurry? _the Prime wondered.

Something told him to follow the scientist and find out.

The thought made him pause. _I __**can't **__do that. He's on the council. If he sees me following him I could get into trouble._

_But what if he's up to something? _another voice argued back. _Remember the questions he was asking about Prowl? Doesn't that seem strange? _

_Now that you mention it, it is does. Why would he be asking such questions?_

_He's a scientist. _Was the logical answer. _Why else would he be asking questions? He knows about Prowl and his new body. What if he's got an unhealthy fascination in him? What if he is thinking of doing something to him?_

_Perceptor? He might be a scientist but he's also an Autobot. He wouldn't do such a thing to somebody of the same fraction._

_Oh really? Why don't you follow him and find out? _

Optimus sighed. _All right. I'll follow him but only to prove you wrong._

_If you can._

_

* * *

_

Prowl's knee scraped painfully against the concrete. His breath came out in a sharp hiss of pain and he pushed himself up. Off to his right he heard derisive laughter. He looked quickly in that direction. Lockdown stood there, only a few feet away.

"Looks like your sense of balance is impaired by your new body, Prowl," the bounty hunter commented, moving away from the building and toward the techno organic cyber ninja.

Prowl clenched his teeth together and quickly scrambled to his feet. He faced the older robot with a determined expression. "I don't know why you're suddenly coming after me but I can assure you I won't let you take me so easily."

Lockdown cocked his head. "Really?" he asked, mockingly. "What do think you can do to stop me in _that_ body? You don't have any kind of advantage anymore, Prowl."

The cyber ninja smirked. "But I do," he informed him. "I can avoid your blows more easily now and you're going to have a harder time catching me."

"We'll just see about that."

He charged.

Prowl stood still, waiting for him to come. His whole body was tense and ready to make its move. As soon as he was close enough Prowl set his hand on the bounty hunter's foot. Using is as a springboard he shot into the air. He got as high as Lockdown's face then lashed out with his right foot, figuring if it was powerful enough to hurt Bumblebee it had enough potency to do some damage to Lockdown.

However, the moment his foot slammed into the bounty hunters face he realized it was a mistake. A sharp pain shot up his leg and he let out a yelp of surprise the same time Lockdown's right optics burst.

Lockdown howled in agony, using his good hand to cover the damage. With his hook he tried to swat at the pesky techno organic but he missed as Prowl fell back to the ground.

The cyber ninja landed badly, putting way too much weight on his left leg. He groaned, grabbing the limb and putting pressure to it. Above he heard Lockdown howling and lifted his head to see the bounty hunter staggering blindly away. He leaned against the wall of a building and glared at Prowl with his undamaged optic. "You're going to pay for that," he growled.

Prowl already was. He tried standing up but his leg punished him and he fell back down.

_Sparks! How could I have been so stupid!?_

Lockdown recovered enough to move. Prowl watched him advance, his expression a mixture of anger and determination. The cyber ninja tried to get up but his leg punished him for the very idea. He fell back onto his rear the moment he tried to stand.

"Forget it, Prowl," the bounty hunter said, almost upon him now. He was smiling confidently. "That leg of yours looks like it wouldn't hold up a fly."

"It doesn't have to hold me up," he shot back, rolling onto his stomach. "It just has to get me far enough away from you." He started crawling, even though he felt like an idiot doing so.

The last time he'd done any crawling was years ago when he'd been forced to clean Yoketron's dojo after pulling a prank on Nightbird and Oil Slick. The master had been so angry he'd made him do it with a toothbrush like item. That had been the most humiliating day of his long life.

Crawling wasn't getting him very far but he had no other alternative. He sensed Lockdown reaching out to grab him and rolled out of the way, just barely avoiding the grabbing limb.

"Hold still!"

Just then a blue rob or energy exploded on the side of the bounty hunters head. He grunted in pain and turned his head. Prowl looked where he looked at spotted Sari standing on the other side of the road, a glowing blue energy orb suspended above her hand. "Leave Prowl alone, you big Captain Hook reject!" she shouted.

"You!" the bounty hunter shouted. "You're that techno organic freak I heard about!"

"Rather be a techno organic freak than a pirate!" she shot back. She raised both her hands now, creating another orb of energy on above her left hand. "I would advise getting away from him before I teach you a lesson!"

"You think you can take me on?" Lockdown asked. He laughed as if the thought amused him. "I'd like to see you try."

"Sari!" Prowl shouted at her.

She ignored him. Keeping her eyes on Lockdown, she charged forward, letting loose one orb after another.

Lockdown took off toward her, dodging the orbs easily. The cyber ninja saw a confident smirk on the older robot's face.

_She's going to get herself killed! _he realized. He tried to stand. _I have to do something! _He fell back down again.

But what could he do? His leg was most likely broken and he'd lost the only weapon he had. The only thing left for him to do was stand back and watch. But he knew he couldn't do that. If he did Sari would lose her life and it would be all his fault.

_Why couldn't I have been brought back to life in my real body? _he found himself thinking. _If I had none of this would have happened! _

* * *

Megatron raised his twin swords and rested them against Slipstream's throat.. "Why should I listen to anything you say after you allowed Starscream to come back to life and then not doing anything about it?" he demanded.

She did not flinch. "Because I had no other option," she responded. "I had no way of taking him out because he was watching me the entire time and he knows how I think because I am a part of him." she pointed to her head. "We are linked. I had no other choice but to do everything he asked of me."

"Do you expect me to believe such nonsense?" he demanded.

"No," she replied. "I do not expect you to believe anything I say. But even if you choose to do so it won't take the truth out of my words. But if you feel you must terminate me anyway.." she spread her arms out wide, giving him a full view of her spark chamber. "Then fire away. I won't stop you."

Megatron stood there, not moving. Behind him Strika and her team watched him in anticipation. Barricade stood off to the side, still and unmoving. His expression had gone blank but his optics flashed once. He too waited to see what the gray robot would do.

After what seemed like an eternity the Decepticon Commander dropped his weapon. "No. I will not." The female seeker relaxed. He wasn't going to kill her after all.

Suddenly she was on the floor, the left side of her face stinging. She looked up to see Megatron towering over her, his optics flared with anger. "You will get more than that if I find our you're lying to me," he told her.

"Don't worry, Megatron," she told him, rubbing her face. "I'm not." She noticed Barricade standing off to the side with a shocked expression on his face. Maybe he hadn't been expecting that to happen.

_Of course not. He's nothing but an Empty. Don't feel sorry for me. I don't need your pity. _

Megatron grabbed her arm and pulled her back to her feet. 'Now," he said to her. "Why don't you tell me everything that's happened since your last conversation?"

* * *

Optimus followed Perceptor to a less frequently used part of the building. He'd been following him for a half hour by then and was beginning to question himself. The scientist didn't act as if he had anything to hide nor did he seem worried about anyone seeing him. He was way too comfortable and relaxed.

_Maybe I was wrong, _Optimus thought. _He isn't acting suspicious at all._

_Then why did he ask you those questions?_

_Innocent curiosity. He was most likely asking questions to ask questions. Nothing more, nothing less. _

_How can you be sure?_

_Don't start that again. You were wrong. He's not up to anything. _

_Or maybe he is.._

_Why do you keep saying that?_

_Well remember this. Perceptor gave up his emotions and unimportant memories for the sake of science. That's why he talks that way and his face never betrays what he's thinking. _

_What are you saying? _

_Maybe the reason why he doesn't seem to be acting suspiciously is because he can't show it. He removed everything from his processor that gave him a personality. Without all of that..._

"He could actually be doing something he shouldn't without anyone finding out about it," Prime finished in a whisper. "Or suspecting..."

_Oh the advantages of having zero character._

_But if he is up to something ... what is it?_

_That's what you're here to find out. _

_A/N_

_I just realized something. This story is going to be real long. I just hope I don't bore anyone with it. _


	23. Chapter 23

CHAPTER 23

Sari knew she was in trouble. Even before she'd gone after Lockdown she knew fighting the bounty hunter was a bad idea. But she couldn't stop herself. Prowl was in trouble and she wanted to protect him. She couldn't just stand back and let Lockdown have his way, not if she could do something to stop it.

So even though she knew she most likely wouldn't win, Lockdown was no Rock Lord after all, she challenged him anyway. She came at him, shooting off orbs of energy. The black and green robot wasn't having a very hard time avoiding them since running forward and shooting blindly wasn't working to her advantage. But even though she was doing this, she was able to score a few hits.

When he got close enough to take a swing at her, the techno organic girl jumped into the air and shot another orb at his head. This time her aim was direct and his cry of pain told her that more than her eyes did.

As she landed she figured she might as well go all out with this and transformed into her battle armor. "Bring it on, Hook!" she shouted, activating her hammer.

Off to the side, Prowl watched the battle, feeling useless. Sari seemed to be doing pretty well but he had a bad feeling that she would not have an advantage soon. She might be too small to take direct hits as much but if the bounty hunter tried to step on her it would be a whole different story. Being small had its advantages and disadvantages, especially when the small thing was only half machine and half squishy.

_I have to help her somehow. _

But he knew that was impossible. With a hurt leg that might be broken he couldn't exactly attack Lockdown. Besides Prowl didn't have very many powers. Being able to control vehicles definitely wouldn't help here. Even if he did get close, Lockdown wasn't a dumb machine. He had his own mind. Control was about of the question. And jumping high and kicking him hadn't done much either except break an optic and injure Prowl.

It was obvious Prowl had abilities Sari didn't have but she had all the useful ones. She could defend herself. He could not.

_I've never felt this useless in all my life! _he thought. Then he just as quickly shoved those thoughts away. _No! I can't let it bother me! Even if I don't have the same abilities as Sari I can deal with this, damage or no damage. _He looked around himself. _There's got to be something I can use.._

That's when he spotted it. The throwing star he'd brought with him. It lay near the building where he and Sari had stood on the roof. Instantly inspired he slowly got to his feet and, ignoring the pain, limped over to it.

Meanwhile Sari was beginning to tire. She shot more orbs at Lockdown but by now he was wise to that and either deflected them with his arm or simply didn't feel them when they impacted. His frame had a few scratches where she'd been able to slice him with her built in swords but not much else. The damage was superficial and didn't really hurt.

He'd also been able to retaliate and has managed to hit her once. Her left arm now hung limply at her side because the bone had broken.

"Give up, freak," he taunted, looming over her as his left hand transformed into a chainsaw. "You're never going to take me down."

"I can still try!" she yelled, charging up her right hand and rushing forward. She jumped high into the air. "Take this!"

Her fist crashed hard into his shoulder the armor. Something in her hand snapped and a fierce pain shot through her arm. Before she could even react to it Lockdown twisted around and swung hard at her with the chainsaw. She didn't see the blow coming and took the flat of it square in the chest.

The girl screamed as she was send flying through the air until she slammed hard into the wall of a building. She hit the wall hard and bounced off, crashing severely into the ground.

Prowl had by then reached his weapon. When he reached out to grab it he heard Sari's scream and turned his head just in time to see her hit the wall then topple to the pavement. "Sari!" Prowl yelled, grabbing up the throwing star and rushing toward her.

When he reached her he put his hand on her shoulder and turned her over. "Sari?" he said.

She winced and opened her eyes. "Sorry, Prowl," she said. "I couldn't protect you."

"It's okay, Sari," he told her. "You tried your best."

"Sorry, Prowl." She smiled slightly. "I guess my best wasn't good enough."

"No," he said to her. "You did just fine."

"Thanks, Prowl," she said, closing her eyes. "But you don't have to lie to me."

"Sari?"

"I told her she would not be able to win," a voice spoke up then. "But the little freak would not listen."

Prowl turned his attention away from Sari and glared up at Lockdown. "She is _not_ a freak," he growled at the giant robot.

The bounty hunter's expression told him he didn't give a slag. "Well it doesn't matter now. She lost." he gave a helpless gesture. "Such a waste too. I hate to tell him that I killed one of the targets."

Prowl stared. "Who?"

"Right now that doesn't concern you," the bounty hunter replied. "You'll find out soon enough."

"No," Prowl snapped, feeling his temperature beginning to rise. "I'll find out _now_." he stood up, grasping the throwing star.

Lockdown looked mildly surprised. "What? Are you going to fight me now too?" he asked. "Give it up, Prowl. There's no way you'll be able to defeat me with that body, even if you were undamaged."

Prowl's eyes started glowing. "I can take you out in any form in any state," he growled. He pointed in his face. "I might be human but I can still kick your sorry aft!"

"Really?" Lockdown changed his stance. "Well then let's test the truth of that statement!"

He charged forward.

Prowl, ignoring the pain in his leg and allowing his temper to snap, did the same. _You're going to regret ever chasing me, Lockdown! What you did to Sari was unforgivable!_

* * *

Barricade did not expect the blow that came. He was send sprawling on the floor before he even knew what had happened. His first instinct was to retaliate and he even raised his blaster to shoot. Unfortunately he never got a chance to fire it.

The weapon was yanked roughly out of his hands and thrown across the room where it hit the wall and fell to the floor with a clatter. While he watched the flight of his gun he was hit again and sent the same direction as his discarded weapon, but, unlike the gun, his body was much heavier and he hit the floor before any part of him made contact with the wall.

"What did I do?" he asked, pushing himself up but keeping his head down. "I followed your orders. Why are you doing this to me?"

"You _did not_ follow a direct order," his punisher replied. "I told you to_ take her out _and yet you _let her live_!"

"_She_ wasn't the one responsible," the police-bot argued, lifting his head. "You saw that for yourself! It was Starscream!"

"I don't want your excuses!" the punisher cut him off. "When I give you a direct order I expect you to comply without question!" a dark gray hand grabbed the black robots helmet and yanked his head back. Barricade stared into the two murderous red optics. "Just remember; even if you did get me out I do not owe you anything! I could just as easily kill you."

"Then do it," Barricade growled. "If that is what you want so much do it!"

"No," Megatron replied, releasing his grasp on the black robot's helmet. Barricade crumbled to the floor. "I still have further use for you but let me just tell you this: You little stunt just added more time before I give you your new insignia. You'll remain empty until you learn." the Decepticon turned away. "and you _will_ learn."

Barricade hunched on the floor, breathing heavily. "Somehow," he said in a raspy voice. "The prize for all this pain feels more like a punishment."

* * *

Slipstream was waiting in the control room when Megatron returned. Team Charr was busily working on fixing the operation systems and basically ignoring her except for Oil Slick who'd been ordered to keep an optic on her. The femme clone watched him as he absently tossed a small glass canister in his left hand. She studied the item, knowing right away that it was important.

_What have you got there, bubble head?_

"Slipstream."

When Megatron spoke her attention was diverted. She looked over at the Decepticon Commander. "Yes, Megatron?" she asked, pushing away from the wall where she'd been leaning with her arms folded.

"I wish to speak with you in private," he replied. "About what happened and how Starscream returned. Since you were the only one here, I know that you know how it happened."

_That's about all I know.. _she thought following him out of the room. _Though I really wish he would not ask me it. _

Megatron led her into one of the private wings of the ship. Once they were both inside the door slid shut with a clang of finality. Slipstream instantly felt like she was about to step into something unpleasant.

"Now, my dear clone lady," Megatron said, tuning to face her. "Why don't you tell me everything that's happened since our last conversation?"

"Where do you want me to start?" she asked, rubbing her arm nervously.

His optics flared up. "The beginning."

_

* * *

_

"**Is there something you need, Optimus Prime**?"

Optimus jumped, startled by Perceptor's voice. _I am such an idiot. He knew! _"Uh.. I wanted to ask you about those questions you were asking about Prowl during the briefing," he replied.

The scientist turned to face him. "**What about them**?"

The Prime looked away, feeling nervous. "They seemed a little... odd," he replied. "I mean I didn't understand what you were getting at by asking them."

"**The answer is obvious, Optimus Prime**," the older robot replied. "**Cyber ninjas always learn things that average transformers are unable to. Even if he had not seen Megatron in a physical form, he might have in spirit**."

"If he had he would have mentioned it."

"**Not so**. **Once a body dies and is woken up in a new one or the same they do not remember what they have seen and heard in their astral state**," Perceptor looked right at him. "**Becoming a living being again sometimes wipes it out those parts of the processor but.. not so with Cyber ninja's. They have been known to shed their physical forms and return to them with memories of everything they learned while outside their shells**."

Optimus didn't comment. This was all new to him. "I did not know that."

"**Very few do**," the scientist responded. "**But now that I have explained, do you see now why I asked those questions**?"

"I guess...." but he really didn't.

Perceptor actually smiled. "**Good, then why don't you head back? Sentinel Prime wishes to speak with you**."

_Oh great. Just what I don't need right now. _The Prime nodded. "All right," he said. He turned away. "Thank you for explaining this to me."

That strange smiled never left the scientist's face. "**You are welcome**."

* * *

Prowl threw the giant shurikan at Lockdown, scoring a hit when it scratched the robot's arm deeply. Pink fluid leaked out of the damage. The bounty hunter roared in pain, grabbing his arm as the liquid seeped through his fingers. Prowl caught the throwing star and moved quickly, getting behind the bounty hunter before he could retaliate.

The robot turned to face him, knowing exactly what he was doing. "Not again!" he rushed at the much smaller robot.

Prowl saw him coming and immediately changed direction, going the opposite way to confuse him. He gripped the throwing star tightly, never taking his eyes off his enemy. _Let's see if you can win without using any of those mods you stole. _

The cyber ninja pushed off the ground with his good leg, pulling back and letting the star fly. Lockdown saw it coming this time and deflected it. It flew back into the cyber ninja's hand. This time he landed easily but his leg pinched him, sending a dull pain coursing up his body. He ignored it, knowing that if he focused on the pain he wouldn't be able to concentrate.

_No pain no gain... _He charged forward once more, wishing he was a few feet taller so he could do some _real_ damage. The most he could hope for now was a repeat to what he'd done to the robot's arm.

Lockdown was waiting this time. When Prowl got close enough he shot something out of his arm. The cyber ninja found himself tangled up in wire. He lost his footing and fell, dropping the star in the process. Instantly he started stuggled to free himself, but he found the more he moved the tighter it got. _No! _He gripped the wire and tried to break it. _I refuse to fall victim to this again!_

Lockdown's laughter made him stop. "Don't bother, Prowl," he said, walking toward him. "Those wires are specially made to hold transformers. Since you're no longer one they will be impossible to break in your current form."

Prowl looked at him with an anger hardened face. "Oh yeah?" he asked. "Why don't I prove you wrong?"

The bounty hunter wasn't the least bit intimidated. "Forget it," he told he, standing over him now. "It won't work. You cannot use that processor over matter anyway."

The cyber ninja glared a him, his eyes beginning to glow behind his tinted glasses. "Why don't I prove the authenticity of that statement?"

Lockdown noticed Prowl's one hand was beginning to glow now along with his eyes. He stared at it. _What in the All Spark is this?_

Sari had regained consciousness by that time. Groaning, she pushed herself to her feet, grasping her wounded arm. She heard Prowl's voice and turned her head toward the sound. She gasped at what she saw. The cyber ninja was down, tangled in a thick cable and the bounty hunter robot was standing over him.

_Prowl! _Instantly she ran forward, wanting to help.

She had almost reached him when she noticed the light. She stopped in her tracks, staring at Prow's right hand. A blue illumination was coming from it. _What? _

Suddenly the light grew so bright she had to cover her eyes. She heard someone howling in pain then everything grew quiet. Sari lowered her arm and found Lockdown lying on the ground, his optics dark. _Huh? What just happened?_

Then she noticed Prowl. He was free from the wires and slowly getting up. His clothes were dirty but he seemed to be okay otherwise. "Prowl?" the girl said a little uncertainly.

The cyber ninja looked her way. When their eyes met he smiled... then collapsed to the ground.

"Prowl!" the girl shouted, rushing over to him. She knelt down and put a hand on his back to turn him over. "Prowl. are you all right?"

"I think," he said in a weak voice. "I might have over done it."

Sari looked back at Lockdown. Now she noticed the damage. His hook arm had been completely blown off. "No," she said. "I think you did too little. He deserved more than that." she looked back at him. "What happened anyway?"

He pushed himself up, shaking his head. "I don't know," he replied. "It just did." He looked at his hands. "I remember thinking that he'd killed you and my temper started going up. I just lost it." the cyber ninja looked at the bounty hunter. "I don't even know where all that power came from." she noticed a tremble in his voice. "What is _wrong_ with me?"

"Nothing," she replied, putting a hand on his arm. "There's _nothing _wrong with you, Prowl! It's just your abilities are starting to show.."

"I _don't_ like it!" he snapped, turning sharply to her. "I should have better control than this! I spent ten million years learning about controlling my emotions and then I become like this and-" he punched the ground. "It's not _right_. I don't _feel_ right."

She put her hand on his shoulder. "Prowl," she said, when he looked at her. "When I started showing my abilities I didn't have any control over them either. I would short circuit things in the tower and Dad would get mad at me. It took time but I learned how to master them with help from Dad and you. Remember our lessons?"

Yes, he did. How could he have forgotten? Since he had been the best at things like that Professor Sumdac had asked him to teach Sari control. It had taken time and she'd gotten frustrated on more than one occasion, but eventually she'd been able to control it and things had become normal. He nodded. "Yes. I taught you patience..."

"And now you must learn that yourself," she replied. "Now that you're starting to show everything you can do, you're going to have to learn to master them like you've mastered everything." she smiled. "I know you can do it, Prowl. You can do _everything_."

He smiled slightly. "You have more faith in me than I do," he told her. "But thank you." his eyes moved to his hands. "but you're right. If I practice patience and self discipline I will be able to over come this."

"Exactly."

"Unfortunately for you you'll have to wait a little longer," a voice spoke up.

Both techno organics looked up, startled. Their eyes focused on the bounty hunters body. It was moving. Lockdown was still online.

Prowl cursed. "Sparks! That blast should have knocked him out for vorns!"

"Maybe it wasn't as powerful as you thought," she suggested.

Either way, this was bad. Prowl grabbed Sari's arm. "Let's move," he ordered then got up to run.

Regrettably that's when his leg decided to give out again. As soon as he put his foot down pain shot through his entire limb. He cried out and fell. Sari turned back to him. "Prowl! Prowl what's wrong?"

"My leg," he answered, through gritted teeth as he grasped the offending limb. "I think I might have broken it."

She knelt down beside him and out his over over her shoulders. "What a time to get hurt," she muttered, getting back up and helping him along. "This just hasn't been your day, has it?"

They didn't get very far. They'd barely taken more than a step when a giant hand wrapped around their bodies and lifted them off the ground. They found themselves staring into Lockdown's one good optic. "Looks like your luck has just run out," he said.

* * *

It didn't take very long for Slipstream to explain what had happened. While she'd related the entire history from the past few days Megatron had been silent, not asking a single question. It made her wonder what he was thinking about but she didn't bother asking. When he finished he looked at her without a word.

"What?" she exclaimed, with rising indignation. "That's exactly what happened. I'm not lying. _That _clone was arrested."

"I never said I did not believe you," he informed her. "But I have a question for you."

"What?"

"Where is the All Spark fragment you brought back with you?"

"Oh that thing," she said, remembering. "It should be back in the control room unless Starscream took it. I haven't seen it since he came back. I don't really know what happened to it."

"Then I think," Megatron said, heading for the door. 'That we should ask somebody who knows."

He put his hand on the switch that opened the door and waited for it to slide open. He found Barricade standing on the other side. "Yes?" he demanded. "What do you want now?"

"Uh.. I couldn't help over hearing what you said and-"

His answer obviously wasn't what Megatron wanted to hear. "Who gave you the authority to listen in on private conversations?" the Decepticon Supreme commander snapped.

"I didn't mean to," the police-bot protested. "I was walking by and I-"

Megatron glared at him. "Nobody 'just walks by' places where I am holding conferences," he shot back. "You came here for a reason. What is it, and don't lie to me."

"I was going to ask you something," Barricade replied, looking directly into his optics. "But I don't remember what it was anymore." when he saw the look on the Decepticon's face he added. "But I might have something more important to tell you."

"What?"

"I think I know where that fragment is and how you can get it."

_A/N_

_Just to let you know this fic is going to be very long. The length might send some people away but I don't mind. I don't really have an ending in mind right now but I have a few ideas for the later chapters. If you're willing to stick around I'll gladly finish the story the best I can. But it might take a long time. _


	24. Chapter 24

**I skipped ahead a little due to an inspiration block. **

CHAPTER 24

_**Now activating internal repairs...**_

Prowl woke with a throbbing pain in his head. Groaning he opened his eyes to a world of fuzz. His glasses had fallen off, but he didn't remember he blow that would have sent them flying off his face. In fact he didn't remember any blow, especially the one that had knocked him out.

_But something did and it hurts like the Pit. _He tried to move his hand to rub the spot on his forehead registering all that pain but found he couldn't. In fact he couldn't move a single limb. It was like he was paralyzed.

Without panicking he moved his fingers, relieved that they still worked. He moved them toward his wrist and felt cold metal. _Oh. That explains it. I'm strapped down._

_But.... _he looked around himself, squinting in an attempt to make out something. _How did I get here? Where am I and what happened to my glasses? _

Another thought came to him. Maybe whoever had captured him had purposely taken his glasses so he would be unable to see his surroundings. But how would they know that everything was snowland without them? They had probably guessed. It was a little obvious.

_It's times like these when I wish I was brought back with perfect vision. _he thought, closing his eyes to rest them because the blur was starting to make them hurt. _I wonder if the optics on the protoform might have been faulty.._

But there was one good thing. His leg no longer hurt. Maybe it was because he could not move therefore was unable to jar it or maybe that computer voice in his head had something to do with it.

He opened his eyes again and tried his best to make out what he could with his impaired vision. Items closer to him were a bit clearer and he thought he saw a computer screen and maybe a chair. That didn't tell him much. For all he knew he could be in one of Professor Sumdac's labs..

_I doubt the Professor would do something like this to me, though. _he told himself. _ Speaking of Sumdac's what happened to Sari? _He closed his eyes, searching his memory for what had happened. He could remember fighting Lockdown who was on some kind of mission to capture the cyber ninja and Sari as well. He recalled shooting the bounty hunter with a powerful beam of energy and knocking him offline. He could also remember the conversation he'd had with Sari afterward. But anything that happened after that... was a blank. It almost felt like he'd been mind wiped or something.

_Lockdown. It must have been him, _he realized. _He was the only person I remember having a run in with this morning. It had to be him. But how could he remove my memories after that point? _The throbbing in his head gave him that answer. _So maybe he didn't use anything special. I probably hit my head on something and it made me forget the rest. But... Sari was with me when it happened. Whatever happened to me could have happened to her but.... where is she now?_

He opened his eyes again and looked around. _Is she in here with me?_

He was tempted to call her name but changed his mind. Yelling for her might draw some unwanted attention. If Lockdown was the one responsible for this he might be close by, waiting to appear and gloat. _He must feel real proud of himself right now.._

* * *

Megatron set the all spark fragment on the control panel. He smiled as he stared down at the shard. It had been quite easy to get it. Starscream had hidden the piece in a very convenient place. Inside his own spark chamber. When Barricade, who seemed to know exactly where it was from the start even though there was no way he could have, had taken them to the cells Starscream had greeted them in his sarcastic way and mocked Megatron when he'd asked him where it was.

It had been Barricade who'd gotten the shard out of the chamber. The police-bot had been rather ruthless in doing so to. He'd stepped into the cell and kicked the cockpit area until it had broken off. He'd ignored the seekers yells of pain and reached inside, yanking the fragment out. Below it lay Starscream's spark which pulsated slightly.

The black former Autobot had almost taken that out too but changed his mind and turned away, leaving the chamber open and the spark exposed. As Starscream had called after him to get it fixed he'd acted like the seeker's voice was on mute.

When he handed Megatron the shard he'd been grinning a grin that made the Decepticon Commander nervous. It looked close to crazy, as if the police-bot was losing control of his sanity.

_So maybe I can still use him, even if he is a little nuts. _The Decepticon Supreme Commander thought, glancing over at Barricade who was working on repairing the damage he'd sustained from his beating. It would be awhile before he was finished.

All well. Megatron could wait before he spoke with him. In the meantime he had other things to think about.

The large gray Decepticon ran his fingers over the keyboard until an image appeared on the screen. Earth. He stared at it for a moment then called up another picture. this one of the city Detroit in Michigan. After calling that one up he opened another. This one of Sumdac Systems. Checking some dates he found that the building was still standing and everything inside was running smoothly. Nothing had changed since he left.

_So my old warden is still succeeding with the use of stolen technology. _He called up the image of Professor Isaac Sumdac. _I find it ironic that he still seems to make gold from everything he touches. Nobody seems to have anything bad to say about him even though it is rather obvious. No one seems to be interested enough to find that out, though. _He put his hand on his chin. An idea formed in his head. Maybe he could ruin Sumdac without resorting to violence. "Hmm... I wonder what he would do if the public discovered all his dirty little secrets?"

He stopped himself before he gave it too much thought. "Then again... nobody seemed to care that much that the child is part robot nor do they seem motivated to find out where she came from or who her actual "parent" is..." the thougth brought a smirk to his face. "Humans can be so foolish sometimes. They must all think she came from Cybertron and since their heroes are friends with her that makes it okay for her to be the way she is... and since the Autobots are considered the good guys to all those little flesh bags, it makes Professor Sumdac seem more honest and trust worthy." He laid his hands on they keyboard and called up another image. "If he was proven to be a liar I wonder if that would make the credibility of the Autobots seem moot?" He grinned. "Maybe we should find out..."

* * *

Prowl heard footsteps and turned his head, squinting against the blur in hopes to making out who it was. Fortunately he didn't have to do that for long. Even though the person wasn't clear, the colors and body shape gave it away. Instantly he felt his anger coming back.

"Lockdown."

The bounty hunter looked at him. "So you can see without those things."

_Not very well but I don't have to let you know that. _"Is that why you took them?" he growled. "To make me blind?"

Lockdown shrugged. "It didn't work anyway."

"What is this about?" the cyber ninja demanded. "I thought you said you weren't after me."

"I wasn't, at first," the bounty hunter replied. "I came to Earth for a completely different reason at the time, but while I was there, I got given a job." he leaned against the control panel. "Capture the techno organics for a rather large sum."

Prowl wanted to find out some things since Lockdown was being so open. He figured it wouldn't hurt to ask anyway. "Who gave the order?"

"I'm not at liberty to give out my clients names," the older robot replied, turning away from him and pulling one of his mods off its hanging hook. "But it's probably somebody you know."

"Was it Megatron?"

"Always quick to blame Decepticons aren't you?" Lockdown asked. He faced him again. "Megatron, as far as I am aware of, does not even know you're alive anymore. Even if he did, I doubt he would want to waste his time having me hunt down a puny little techno organic he could squash any time. He would want to find you himself and take you out personally." he smirked. "He doesn't need me for everything.. Besides; I stopped taking jobs from him eons ago. It wasn't worth it."

_It's not Megatron? _The news surprised him. He'd only been guessing that it might have been the Decepticon Commander but that guess had proven wrong. _But who else would want to get their hands on me and why?_

Lockdown wasn't surprised by Prowl's astonishment. He could tell by the look on his face that he had not expected to be given such an answer. _You're not always right, Prowl. Get over it. _

When Prowl spoke again he'd changed the subject. "What about Sari?"

The hunter cocked his head, looking like he'd never heard that name before. "Sari?"

"The girl who was with me."

"Oh, the girl." the bounty hunter chuckled. "She's fine. My client figured he might as well get the whole set while I was at it, though I don't see what is so fascinating about her. She never switched bodies."

So he'd taken Sari too. "Where is she?"

"Not too far"

The ninja was determined to find out. He sat up as best he could. "Where?"

"You don't call the shots, Prowl," Lockdown snapped. "You'll see her when we reach out destination. Not before."

Prowl yanked against the metal holding him down. "If you hurt her in any way.."

The bounty hunter noticed how upset he looked. "You care about her, don't you?"

"Of course I do! She's my friend!"

He smiled. "That's not exactly what I meant."

"The-" Prowl stopped himself as the meaning of Lockdown's words hit him. The bounty hunter hadn't meant a normal friendship. He'd been implying something much different. _Feelings. He thinks I have feelings for her.._

_Don't you? _

_Of course I do. She's my friend. If I didn't care about her I wouldn't be worried._

_Not those kinds of feelings, Prowl. The feelings Sari spoke about when you asked about kissing. Those are the feelings he means._

_As if I didn't know that. _

_Well do you feel for her that way?_

_"_You don't know what you're talking about."

Lockdown raised an eye ridge. "Don't I?" he asked. "I've been around a lot longer than you, Prowl. I've seen more, heard more, and had more relationships than you have. I know what I'm talking about." he crossed the room and ran his hook over the table Prowl was strapped to, creating a loud scraping sound. "Let me just say this: She's too young for you. You have millions of years between you. I would advise against trying to have any relationship with her. It won't work for either of you."

"Why should you care what I do?" Prowl demanded.

"I don't," the bounty hunter told him. "I'm just giving you a little wisdom."

"I don't _need _your wisdom."

"Fine." he stepped away. "Do what you will. Not that any of that will matter soon anyway. In a matter of hours the girl will be the least of your worries."

_Not if I can get out of here before we reach our destination.._

* * *

Barricade decided to check on Stascream. It had been hours since anyone had looked in the cells to make sure he was still there. He didn't really want to do it but Megatron was busy with something important and most of team Charr had gone back to their ship to check on news of their comrades on Cybertron. As for where Slipstream was, he hadn't the slightest idea and didn't care even if he did. After getting the shard back from he creator she'd disappeared and nobody had seen her since, though Megatron had made it clear that he and only he knew where she'd gone. That answer had made the police-bot wonder but since he didn't know her very well to begin with he didn't ask or go looking for her.

Wherever she was that was her business.

"Here struts in Megatron's little Empty lapdog," Starscream commented when Barricade entered the room. "What are you here for now? You going to damage me further to help yourself look good? Or are you going to extinguish my spark so you have something to brag about?"

The black robot looked at him. Despite the damage and obvious pain, Starscream still maintained his sarcastic nature. "I am only here to make sure you're still where we put you," he said flatly.

The seeker smirked. "Where _else_ could I be under such _superior _survalience?" he asked, his voice loaded with sarcasm. "There is _no way_ I could free myself."

Barricade didn't buy that. He remembered the story Jazz had once told him about Starscream breaking out of their ship. No bonds could hold him for very long and they both knew it. "You're not a very good liar," he told him, walking over to the cell. "You could break out of that any time you wanted and yet you're still here." he put his hand on the bars and peered down at him. "Hmm. I wonder what you're planning."

Starscream grinned. "That's for me to know and you to find out."

Cade frowned. Yes, the traitor did have something up his servo. He wouldn't be surprised if the jet was only _pretending_ to still be in those stasis cuffs. _I'm not going to check, _he thought. _I know exactly what will happened if I check. He'll either suddenly come loose and make a break for the door or he'll come loose and break __**me**__. _

"What's that face for, Empty?" Starscream asked. "Don't you believe me?"

"Oh, I believe you," the police-bot retorted. "and that's why I'm not going to do anything about it." he turned away. "I know you're smarter than Megatron gives you credit for. You won't stay in the cell for very long but I feel I should give you some advice. Don't bother. It won't end well for you if you do."

Starscream laughed. "Are you worried about me, Empty?" he asked him. "Because if you are; I suggest you worry about your own problems."

Barricade turned back to him. "I am," he told him. "Your problem is my own. If something happens to you I'm going to be the one who pays for it."

Starscream's smile didn't fade. "Then you'd better start running."

The black robot turned away and headed out of the door. "What would be the point?" he asked in a voice loud enough for the seeker to hear. "He'll just come after me if I do."

* * *

Prowl focused all of his attention on the metal clamp binding his wrist. _If I can still summon my weapons back to me and I can blast Lockdown with energy maybe I can still use Process- er mind over matter. _A low hum vibrated in his throat as he stared at the binding. If he could get this one open he could free himself and go looking for Sari. _He said she was here. It's very likely that she's close by... and maybe while I'm looking I'll find my glasses too. _

Minutes passed. He continued to concentrate but all he was achiveing was a major headache. After about half an hour he gave up with an exasperated sigh. "Face it, Prowl," he said staring up at the ceiling. "That is one ability you didn't come back with."

He froze when he heard a soft chuckling. "Who's there?" he demanded, turning his head.

Lockdown stepped back into the room. "Who else?"

Prowl glared at him. "What do you want now?"

"Nothing," the bounty hunter replied. "Just amusing myself."

That made Prowl wonder how long he'd been standing there. He didn't ask. Right now Lockdown was the last person he wanted to talk to. He looked away, hoping the older robot would take the hint and leave him alone. The robot's presence was a distraction and messed up his thinking.

But Lockdown had no intention of leaving him alone. Since he was going to stay Prowl might as well learn some things. "Where are you taking me?" he asked.

Lockdown smirked, or he thought he did. "You'll find out soon enough."

* * *

Professor Isaac Sumdac was worried. When he'd gone into Sari's room that morning to wake her up he'd discovered she'd already left. While that wasn't all that new or strange the fact that she hadn't called was. She and him had made an agreement. If she was going to be out all day, hanging with the Autobots she would call him at least once to let him know where she was.

_Did she forget? No. She's never done anything like this before._

So the inventor decided to call the Autobots and check on her. Ratchet was the one who answered. "Yeah?" he asked in a grumpy voice.

"Hi, Ratchet. Can I please speak to Sari?"

"Sari?" the medics voice was full of confusion. "Sari's not here."

"What do you mean she's not there?"

"Just like I said. Sari isn't here and she hasn't been here all day."

"Did she perhaps go out with Bumblebee?" the girl usually called the yellow bots comlink when she wanted to go places.

"Hold on, I'll ask him." the medic turned to Bumblebee who was sitting on the couch. "Did Sari contact you at all this morning ?" he asked.

"No," Bee replied. "I haven't spoken to her since last night." he looked at him curiously. "Why?"

Ratchet didn't reply. He turned away and focused on the inventor again. "No, she didn't call him. He's been here all morning."

"Oh," now Sumdac was starting to panic. "Then where is she? Do you think something might have happened to her?"

"I don't know."

"Thanks anyway." he hung up. After setting the phone back in its cradle he stepped over to the window and peeked out over the city. "Sari, where are you?"

He turned away and headed back to the phone, knowing he needed to call the police and report her missing. But just as he placed his hand on it, the phone began to ring. He jumped them quickly picked it up, thinking it was Sari calling to apologize for not calling him sooner.

"Hello, Sari?"

"Professor Sumdac," said a raspy male voice on the other end. "You forgot about me already? I'm hurt."

Sumdac nearly dropped the phone. He knew exactly who was speaking to him. "Megatron?"

He could almost see the smile on the Decepticon's face. "So you _do_ remember me after all.."

000000

"What was that about?" Bumblebee asked when Ratchet finished speaking with the inventor. "Who was it?"

The medic turned to him. "Professor Sumdac," he replied, answering the second question first. "It seems Sari went somewhere and didn't tell him. He called to see if we had seen her."

Bee shook his head. "Now that you mention it," he said, thinking. "Prowl's hasn't come out of his room in hours. Do you think she could have called him?"

"Why don't we ask him."

The two robots headed to the cyber ninja's room. When they stepped inside they found it empty. "He's gone too," Ratchet commented, not surprised.

"Then that must mean they went somewhere together.." Bee concluded, thoughtfully.

"If they had then we don't have to worry. Prowl might be small but he can still take care of himself. If they run into trouble he'll protect Sari."

Bumblebee frowned. Something told him that wasn't the case. He remembered what had happened at the park and while he doubted Prowl would try something like that on Sari again he couldn't be sure. Prowl's hormones were still going through the teen years right now and he might do something he would regret later on pure impulse. Bee couldn't let that happen. "Maybe we should contact them," he suggested. "Just to be safe."

* * *

The sound of heavy footsteps woke Prowl from a light sleep state. Because he had been unable to free himself no matter how much effort he put into it he decided to just accept his fate for now and take his chances once the ship reached its destination. He kept his eyes closed, feining sleep, and waited for the Lockdown to return.

As the footsteps grew closer he heard the bounty hunter speaking. But not to himself. There was another voice answering him. Had his client arrived?

Opening his eyes ever so slightly he watched the door, waiting for both robots to step into the room. A few minutes later the door slid open with a hiss and the transformers entered.

Even without his glasses on he easily recognized the other person by their color scheme alone. When it spoke he knew his guess was right.

**"I see you managed to take him without causing any damage to his frame."**

Prowl's whole body jolted. A horrible feeling shot through him as he realized that the client was somebody he'd trusted and knew. _I can't belief it!_

_A/N_

_Do do doooo. Ugh I need some help. Maybe if I rewatch some of the episodes I'll get some ideas. I feel like my ideas are running out or something here. _

_Filler... filler now... yeah this chapter felt like nothing but filler.  
_


	25. Chapter 25

CHAPTER 25

"I can't believe you would do such a thing to your own comrade!"

Perceptor and Lockdown turned their heads toward the table. Prowl was awake. His head was lifted and he glared coldly at the Autobot scientist. "Why would you do such a thing?!"

The scientist looked back at Lockdown, ignoring Prowl's questions. "**You did manage to take the female as well, did you not?" **he asked.

Lockdown nodded. "Yes, I have her too," he replied. "She is in perfect condition as well."

Perceptor nodded. "**Good enough." **he turned away and headed out of the room. **"Bring them in."**

**

* * *

**

"What do you want?" Professor Sumdac demanded.

"I just thought I'd contact you and let you know that I am out of prison."

"Why would you want to tell _me_ that?" the inventor demanded. He had had no contact with Megatron since the incident with the space bridge. The man hoped to never have any form of meeting with him again.

"Personal reasons," the Decepticon replied. "For one thing I know where you live and can go there any time I want and destroy it."

Sumdac looked toward the window. He searched the sky for any sign of an attack helicopter. The only flying machine was the city blimp.

"Don't bother looking for me," Megatron replied. "I'm not there and you know as well as I do that if I wanted to take you out I wouldn't do it in broad daylight."

Isaac moved away from the window. "What do you want?" he asked again, more nervously.

"You know what I want," his caller replied calmly. "I want to see you fall, Professor Sumdac and fall you will."

"What do you mean?"

The smile was back in Megatron's voice. "Not what you're thinking," he replied. "But it comes should have known this way would come when you allowed me to run all the systems in the building."

Sumdac was starting to panic. "No!"

"Yes," Megatron replied. "this is it for you. I hope you like falling, because that is something you're going to be doing a lot of very soon."

"What-"

Click.

* * *

Ratchet wasn't sure if contacting Prowl was a good idea. In fact he didn't even know if he _could_. The cyber ninja didn't exactly have a commlink any longer. Attempting to get in contact might end up being pointless.

"Didn't Sari give him a cellphone?" Bulkhead inquired when Ratchet voiced the question.

The other two Autobots turned to look at him. They hadn't heard him come into the room.

"What?" the big green robot asked. "She did. I saw her."

"And you didn't think to tell us sooner?" the medic asked. He looked annoyed.

Bulkhead shrugged. "I didn't think it was all that important."

* * *

_"Why would you do such a thing?!"_

Prowl's words came back to Perceptor's mind as he stepped out of the ship. They repeated themselves in a steady mandate that came down to one thing. _Shame on you. Shame! Shame! Shame! _

It was understandable why Prowl would think that way. He was the very subject of Perceptor's latest interest. But if he only knew the whole reason for it. Maybe then he wouldn't be saying such things.

Or maybe he would?

But the scientist wasn't feeling guilty about it. Not in the slightest. He couldn't really feel that emotion any longer anyway. Besides; it wasn't like what he wanted to do was anything _harmful_ to the masses. He just wanted to know what had caused Prowl's resurrection, why it happened, and the reason for him coming back in such a strange yet fascinating form.

He glanced back at the ship. Lockdown was busy getting the two techno organics ready. Sari had actually been a huge source of curiosity for quite awhile but, with everyone protecting her, he'd had no ways to get alone with her for study. Now that she no longer had anyone to watch her, really it had been the perfect time.

Hopefully his questions would be answered quickly and easily. Though he had the patience he did not think it was wise to take too long. Somebody might get suspicious. He did not need that.

Distractions took up too much time.

* * *

Optimus Prime just wanted to go back to Earth. The longer he stayed on Cybertron the closer Megatron would get to the planet where his friends were. He'd reminded the council of that but his words fell on deaf audio receptors. He also wondered where Ultra Magnus was during these briefings. He was strangely absent. His little meeting with Sentinel hadn't helped either since the other Prime blamed him for everything. Just like always.

When Optimus asked him about Ultra Magnus he'd been strangely aloof which meant he knew something but wasn't telling.

"Where has Ultra Magnus been all this time?" he asked himself as he walked down the hall. "Is he away on business? Did he leave the rest of the council in charge and Sentinel too? Does he even know about any of this?"

Of course he did. He was the one who wanted Optimus and Jazz to return.

Speaking of Jazz... where was the white cyber ninja anyway?

The Prime noticed a familiar figure walking further down the hall. "Cliffumper!" he called, running to catch up with him.

The small red Autobot stopped walking and turned. When he saw Optimus he waited for him to catch up. When he was close enough he said. "I'm sorry Optimus but I can't help you with anything."

Prime stared at him. "But why?" he asked.

Cliffjumper looked away. "It's complicated," he said.

"_How_ is it complicated?" he asked. "You don't even know what I'm going to ask you."

"Unfortunately I do," the other robot responded. "It's either about Ultra Magnus absence or Jazz's."

"How did-"

"It's not that hard to figure out," he cut him off. "Those are the questions quite a few of the Guard have been asking. Just two hours ago Sentinel Prime was in here asking the exact same question you were going to. Of course I could not give him an answer either." he stared the Prime in the face. "I can't answer you because I don't know myself. The only information I can give you is that when you both arrived Ultra Magnus took Jazz aside and I haven't seen them since." he shook his head. "Maybe they're having their own conference about this whole thing."

"Jazz knew where Megatron was heading," Optimus replied. "He told me himself."

"Yes, Earth, we know that," Cliffjumper replied. "But we can't prove anything. He could be anywhere. We aren't even sure if that _is_ the right destination anymore."

"What do you mean?"

"It all comes down to Barricade."

"Barricade?" The Prime looked confused. "What does he have to do with this?"

"Plenty since he's the one who had a hand in Megatron's escape from the stockade." the small red Autobot folded his arms. "Barricade has access to maps of barely used sectors of the galaxies. They were programmed into his very processor. He is the only one who has them aside from the classified files. If he chose to use those maps they could be anywhere."

Optimus was silent. He didn't know that. "If that is true why did you allow him to access them?"

"We didn't," Cliffjumper replied. "He hacked into the system and pirated them out. Since he never used them we figured we had nothing to worry about." he shook his head. "When it happened we should have done more than give him probation."

"It's not your fault. Maybe he hasn't thought to use them."

"Maybe not." but by the look on the smaller robots face the Prime could see that he did not believe it.

* * *

Ratchet couldn't believe what he just heard. "Didn't think it was important!?" he exclaimed. "Of course it's important!"

"Hey, don't get mad at me," Bulkhead said, annoyed. "It's not my fault Prowl never said anything about it. I thought he would..."

"Prowl is notorious for keeping things to himself," the medic responded. "He isn't likely to come out in the open and blab things."

"There you go then," Bulkhead said. He turned away and headed out of the room. "Now that you know, why don't you try contacting him?"

"I don't know the number!" the medic called after him.

Bulkhead turned around and looked back at him. "Well I can't help you there," he said. "By the way. Why are you so desperate to call him anyway?" He saw his friends exchange a look. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Ratchet knew the green robot needed to know what was going on. Sari was his friend too and it would be better if they all were aware of Professor Sumdac's call. "It's about Sari," he began. "She's missing."

Bulkhead's optics blinked. "Missing?" he asked. "What do you mean?"

"She left Sumdac Tower early this morning and never called Professor Sumdac to let him know where she was," he explained.

That didn't sound like Sari. "But I thought she-"

"So did we."

"What does that have to do with Prowl?" he wanted to know.

"He's not here either," Bumblebee spoke up. "We went to his room and he's not here."

"So?" he asked. "That's not strange for him. He does that a lot of times."

"But it _is _strange when he disappears the same day that Sari decides not to call her father," Bee informed him. "If he's missing and she isn't calling her dad that must mean that something happened to them."

Ratchet shot him a look. "We don't know that."

"It's the only scenario that fits!" the younger robot shot back.

"You don't know that! You're only making theories"

Bumblebee folded his arms. "Whatever," he said, making a face. "Think what you will but I know I'm right." he started out of the room.

"Where are you going?" Bulkhead called after him.

"Wherever I want!"

* * *

Barricade was headed back to the main control room when he realized someone was following him. Stopping he looked behind himself but saw nobody. _This feels familiar. _he thought, starting up again. _Like what happened in the Darksyde. _

He remembered the entire incident clearly. Oil Slick had been stalking him until the police-bot had called him out. After that they'd had a confrontation and the cyber ninja had tried to poison him.

After that things got to where they were now. The police bot was determined not to let that happened again.

"So what were you and the traitor talking about, Empty?"

Barricade stopped and turned around. Oil Slick stood behind him with his arms folded. "Not what you think we were, chemist," he responded, his optics hardening.

"Of course you would say that," he shot back. "I wouldn't expect you to tell the truth."

"I would not lie about something like that. I'm the one who took care of him."

"With help from his little clone baby." the cyber ninja smirked. "She proves to be more useful that you are."

Barricade wasn't going to fight him him. It wasn't worth it. "Whatever. Just leave me alone." he turned away. "Things would be a lot better if you did."

"Is that a threat?"

Barricade looked back at him. "No," he said. "It's a warning."

* * *

"This is wrong!" Prowl shouted, struggling to free himself. "Why are you doing this?"

Perceptor looked over at the examining table Prowl lay strapped to. The scientist had decided to look at him first. Sari was currently inside a transparent glass test tube on the shelf. She banged her fists against it and shouted her indignation but the tube was soundproof and her words only echoed back at her. "**It's not what you think, cyber ninja Prowl**," he replied in a monotone. "**I am doing this for the benefit of everyone**."

"How can kidnapping one of your own and subjecting them to this be for the good of _anyone_?"

The scientist adjusted his glasses. "**What happened to you is fascinating**," he answered. " **I would like to find out what caused it. There has to be a logical explanation for it**." he put his hand on his hip. "**Of course you could tell me what did this and maybe then I won't have to examine you**."

Prowl didn't reply. He honestly had no idea why that happened. "I don't know," he blurted out. "But I don't think dissecting me will explain it either!"

Perceptor actually smiled. "**That remains to be seen**."

The cyber ninja couldn't believe what he was hearing. Perceptor actually thought this would be useful? What had given him such an idea anyway?

_Scientific curiosity. He's been wandering about this kind of thing since he saw Sari. Of course he'd want to run tests on the two things that have gone through such a change. To the pit with the consequences. The bot doesn't even have a conscious anymore. _

"So what are you going to do?" he demanded. "Take me apart to see how I work?"

The scientist picked up a tiny handsaw. "**Something like that**." he replied, turning the machine on.

Prowl stared at him in horror as he came forward.

* * *

Bumblebee decided to try contacting Prowl since Ratchet wasn't going to. Even though he didn't really know the number he took a guess anyway. If the phone Sari gave the cyber ninja happened to be her old one then it would be much easier. If not... well then it would just take longer.

_To slag with it. I'm going to find out for myself. If Sari isn't calling because Prowl's got some kind of biological curiosity... _the thought made him shutter. What if that was the reason? Prowl had always been interested in the thing called reproduction. What if he and Sari...?

Bumblebee shook his head. _No, I can't think that. Even if Prowl's acting all hormoney I don't think he'd go that far and I doubt Sari would let him. She might just hand him a book about that and make him read it or something.. _the yellow painted Autobot stopped that thought. "If she didn't that he might get even more curious."

Bumblebee charged toward the door, transforming. "I can't let him do that!"

As he roared out of the plant he opened his commlink and tried to pick up the frequency for Prowl or at least Sari's phone. It was likely that she'd taken it with her when she left. After a moment he heard a ringing which told him he'd gotten Sari. But she never answered. The phone just kept on ringing and ringing.

That did not help Bumblebee's fears. Suddenly panicky he attempted to pinpoint to location of the Mobile device. It zeroed in on an urban area. "Gotcha!"

He changed lanes and took the road that led to the location.

When he arrived he transformed and looked around, still trying to find the area. So far the only people he saw were mothers outside with their children. That gave him an idea. Maybe one of these people had seen them.

"Excuse me," he said, walking up to an Asian looking woman weeding her garden. "Maybe I asked you a question that might seem strange?"

"Okay," the woman replied, getting up and facing him. Since everyone knew about the Autobots she wasn't the least bit nervous talking to one. "What do you want to know?"

"Have you seen a girl with red hair and an orange and yellow dress escorting a man with black hair and clothing?" he wanted to know.

The woman thought for a moment then shook her head. "I'm sorry,' she replied. "I haven't seen anyone who fits that description."

"Oh," he said disappointed. "Thanks anyway."

He turned away and headed down the street. Most of the houses in this area had at least one person outside. He sighed and slumped his shoulders. "This is going to be a long day."

* * *

Perceptor lowered the saw closer to Prowl's body. The cyber ninja didn't even flinch. He glared over the top of it at the scientist, his eyes challenging him to get closer. It made the scientist uneasy.

"Don't make this harder than it already is."

'Then I would suggest taking me offline before you start."

Perceptor was about to comment on that when he heard his computer screen flaring up. Instantly he hid the saw and turned around so his body blocked Prowl's. The face of a blue and white colored femme appeared o the screen. "Perceptor," she said.

"What is it, Chromia?" he asked.

"Ultra Magnus requests your input on an important issue," she replied. "He told me to tell you to head there immediately."

He nodded. "I am on my way."

Chromia nodded. "I will let him know.' then the screen blinked out.

"Well it seems," Perceptor said, turning back to Prowl. "That you have been given some time." he turned away and headed toward the door. "I wouldn't advise trying to escape. You will not get very far."

When the door closed behind the scientist Prowl instantly started struggling. He pulled against the metal straps holding him onto the table but wasn't accomplishing much except bruises and a lot of pain. Eventually he had to take a rest and went limp.

_Sparks, I can't break free! _He glared down at the metal strap on his wrist. _I couldn't break them on Lockdown's ship and I can't break them here. This would be much easier if I were bigger or at least stronger. _he stared at the ceiling. "So just because I got a new body my abilities have to be toned down to fit them?"

Now that he said it out loud he realized how logical that sounded. "Of course they have to be lowered. This body most likely wouldn't be able to handle that much power. But even so." he looked at the bonds again. "Couldn't I at least have been given some kind of ability to help me break free from something like this?"

_Try using your brain, genius._

He jumped, startled. Where had that thought come from? He lifted his head and looked up at the shelf where Sari was. She was leaning against the jar, staring back at him. Had it been her?

_Oh course who else would it be?_

_How are you talking to me?_

_I don't know. I just am. I was thinking that I wished I could say something to you an the next minute I was reading your thoughts. _

Well well a new ability but it wasn't very useful besides being able to talk to each other. _Do you have any ideas?_

_No. That's Why I told you to think of one._

_I can't._

_Come on, Prowl. you always get yourself out of situations. I'm sure this one will be just as easy._

_But those other incidents happened when I was a robot. This is different._

He saw her frown. _You're giving up? Whatever happened to the Prowl I knew? You going to change just because your body did? How many times do I have to repeat myself. You're still you. Don't think otherwise. _

_Sari._

_What?_

_Please don't state the obvious. _

_Then get your rear in gear and think of something! _

_Fine. I'll try_

_No try. Do or do not do. There is no try. _

_What kind of advice is that?_

He saw her smile a goofy smile. _Master Yoda. _

_A/N_

_This chapter.. I don't know what to say about it. I got writers block doing this one and my mind went blank. It was hard to come up with stuff for it but I eventually got something down, even if it's not that great. _

_Now how am I going to get Prowl's glasses back?_


	26. Chapter 26

CHAPTER 26

Bumblebee was making very little progress. He'd asked almost everyone in the neighborhood if they'd seen either person he was looking for and all of them had given him the same answer. "No."

_But somebody had to have seen __**something**__, _he thought, sitting down on the sidewalk to rest. _I'm still picking up Sari's cellphone signal._ He lifted his head and looked around. _It has to be here somewhere._

And at that very moment the loud roar of a motorcycle interrupted his thoughts.

"That's sounds familiar," he remarked, getting up and turned toward the sound. "Almost like how Prowl's vehicle mode sounds. Did he turned back into a robot?"

_Of course not. That's impossible._

"But it could be his bike," he realized. "The one Professor Sumdac built for him." He took off toward the sound. "If _it's_ here maybe Prowl is too." _And if Prowl is here that means so is Sari. _

A short time later he came upon a teenager revving up a black and gold motorcycle. Bee's shoulders slumped in disappointment. _Oh. It wasn't him after all._

He turned to walk away then realized something. Prowl's bike had been built customized and though Bee had only seen it a few times he knew exactly what had been put on the bike. He looked back, giving it a more scrutinizing look. He saw the Autobot insignia painted on the front.

"Hey!" he shouted at the kid. "Wait a second!"

The teenager jumped then lifted his head to stare wide eyed at the Autobot. "Uh.. yeah?"

"Where did you get that bike?" Bumblebee demanded.

"I uh.. It's mine!"

"Oh really?" Bee asked. "It looks a lot like a friend of mines."

The boy shook his head and denied the claim a little to emphatically. "No it's mine."

Bee pointed at the symbol. "Then explain that."

The kid looked at the red Autobot symbol. "I... I had it painted there." he replied. "I wanted my bike to look a lot like the vehicle mode of that awesome ninja friend of yours."

"Oh really?" Bumblebee said nothing for a second then blurted out. "Roll out!"

Suddenly the bike fired up and took off down the street with the kid hanging on for dear life and screaming his head off. Bumblebee watched it streak away then transformed and went after it.

* * *

Megatron with a little help from Cyclonus hacked into the Sumdac files without even having to go into the building.

"Why do you want me to help you with this, sir?" Cyclonus had asked when Megatron had explained what he wanted to him. "Why don't you just go down there and squash the little fleshbag if you hate him so much?"

Megatron had given him a look. "Such a lack of imagination," he said. "If I should do that I would have a feeling of satisfaction that would last for only a short time. I want to prolong this, especially since he is responsible for my humiliation." he shook his head. "I want him to suffer and I want it to last."

Cyclonus had looked somewhat confused but hadn't asked anymore questions. It was best just to do what he wanted without questioning the sanity of it.... or the mental state of his supirior

The Decepticon Commander waded through the files slowly, reading each one carefully and exiting ones that were useless. If he came upon one that looked like it would be usefull he saved it into the_ Nemesis _computer for further use.

After working on it for an hour he came upon something that looked promising. Smiling he downloaded the file. _Perfect. Time to pay for humiliating me, Professor._

* * *

Prowl studied the metal straps holding him to the table, in hopes of finding some kind of weakness. From what he could see they seemed solid and unbreakable.

_Nothing is unbreakable, _he thought. _Everything has some kind of vulnerability. I just have to figure out what it is..._

_It's metal. Metal melts. Maybe if I put heat to it it'll get soft enough for me to slip out of._

But how was he going to do that? He had nothing like that and Perceptor's welding torch was too far away to reach. _If I could still use processor over matter that wouldn't be a problem. _

He knew that was wishful thinking but he couldn't help it. He didn't want to be there when Perceptor came back. He knew exactly what would happen if he was and the thought didn't make him feel any better.

_But that won't happen if I can free myself. _

He looked back at the metal. Nothing came to him.

* * *

Meanwhile Sari was racking her own brain for a plan. She paced back and forth in the confined space of the jar, thinking out loud. "There has got to be a way to break this thing. No glass has ever been strong enough to stay in it's shape forever." she turned to the glass and banged her hand against it. Solid.

"This might require a lot of thinking." she looked down at Prowl who seemed to be attempting his own escape. She'd noticed his glasses were missing earlier and wondered if that was impairing him somehow. _We'll have to find them when we get out of this. _she thought. _We can't have him running around blind as a bat. _She turned away. _Maybe that spooky scientist has them here somewhere..._

She snapped out of her train of thought. "What are you doing? Escaping is more important than worrying about finding bifocals!" she hit the glass. "You can worry about them later!"

She looked back at Prowl then noticed something about the jar. It was near the edge of the shelf, rather close to the edge to be precise. "Hmm. Maybe I can't do something with this."

* * *

Meanwhile Prowl had come up with a plan of his own. He'd been thinking about what had happened earlier when Lockdown was about to capture him and he'd blasted him with energy. His hands had started glowing.

_If they glow then maybe I can make them heat up too, _he thought. _Light creates heat so maybe if I..._ he concentrated, putting all his energy into his arms and hands.

Suddenly he felt heat coursing up his arms. Turning his head he stared down at one, seeing that it was beginning to glow a bright blue light. _It's working! _

He continued to concentrate, focusing all the warmth into his arms then the rest of his body. As he did so the bands holding him down began to weaken as the metal softened. Soon he was able to move. Smiling to himself, he pushed against the table and slowly slid out of the cables.

Just as he did so he heard a strange thunking sound and turned his head just in time to see the jar that Sari was in topple off the shelf. He watched it fall and hit the floor. It did not break.

_Sari? _He stood and ran to the edge of the table then jumped down. His one leg protested a little but it wasn't as bad as before. He ran toward the jar and reached it just as Sari kicked out the lid. It popped out and slammed right into his chest, knocking him over.

"Ugh!"

Sari climbed out of the jar and spotted him lying on the floor with the lid covering him.

"Prowl!" she exclaimed, running over to him. "Are you all right?"

He groaned and shoved the lid off. "I think so," he said, wrapping his arm around his waist. "No broken ribs but that hurt!"

"I'm sorry," she said, putting out her hand as an offer to help him up. "I didn't see you."

He took it. "It's all right," he said, wincing as he got up. "As long as you're okay." he squinted at her. "At least I _think_ you're okay.."

She smiled. "I'm fine, but you need your glasses."

He frowned. "I doubt he has them," he told her. "If my guess is right my glasses are still back on Earth where Lockdown took us from."

While he was speaking Sari was looking around the room. "Or maybe not," she said, walking away from him.

He turned to watch her. "Sari, where are you going?"

"Just a minute," she said, stopping at the foot of a small table. She looked up, calculating the distance then jumped, throwing up her hands and grabbed onto the edge.

Prowl ran to the spot where she'd jumped from and watched as she climbed onto the table and disappeared. _What is she doing up there? _he wondered, his head craned upward.

A few minutes later he heard her let out a triumphant "Ah hah!" then she was back at the edge and jumping down. He moved a step back to avoid being sat on.

She landed on all fours then straightened up and looked at him, smiling. "What was that about?" he asked her.

"This," she answered then plunked something on his face.

Right away his vision cleared. "My glasses!" he exclaimed, putting up a hand to push them into a comfortable position. "He had them after all."

"Yeah," she said. "I don't know why though or how both those guys could handle them without making them break."

"Maybe he wanted to study them," he suggested, feeling more whole now that he could see again.

"I don't see why," she answered, folding her arms. "That Bill Nye the science robot guy also wears glasses. I don't see why he would be interested in yours since you've always worn them yourself."

He made a face. "Those glasses as you call them were not glasses," the cyber ninja informed her.

"No?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No," he told her. "That was a visor. I used it to protect my optics."

"Oh," she said, looking like she'd just learned something new. "All this time I thought you wore those things because you had bad eye site. I guess all cyber ninjas wear those things."

"Well," he said, pushing his glasses up his nose again. "Some do." he took her arm and started leading her toward the door. "We can talk about that later. Right now I think we should be focusing our energy on getting out of here before Perceptor comes back."

"Right," she agreed, nodding. "I wouldn't want him dissecting either of us.."

Prowl didn't comment on that. He didn't like thinking about it. Instead he set his mind on just getting out of the laboratory. He looked up at the door. The switch was rather high up and he wasn't sure he'd be able to reach it even if he jumped. Though he knew his new body enabled him to jump higher than normal he wasn't sure it would go that far.

_Or maybe it will. If I can go up high enough to hit Lockdown in the face this should be easy. _Lockdown was a tall robot and when he'd seen the bounty hunter and the scientist standing together Perceptor had looked a few feet shorter. _So maybe, just maybe I'll be able to reach it._

He let go of Sari's arm and walked backward. The girl watched him, curiously. "What are you doing?" she asked.

Prowl stopped a few feet away and looked at her. "Watch." he ordered before rushing forward.

Sari moved out of the way even though she didn't really have to. Prowl shot past her then shoved off with his foot and into the air. He flew toward the power button on the door and slammed into it hard with not just his hand but his entire body. As he fell the door let out a satisfying ding and slid open.

Prowl landed on his back with a thud. Sari ran over to him. "Are you all right?" she asked, leaning over him.

He groaned and got up. "I'm fine but," he touched his face and blood came off on his fingers. "I think I damaged my factory sensors."

She looked at he blood and winced. "Ouch," she said. She wiped at it with her sleeve. "Here let me-"

The door started to hiss shut. Prowl, remembering why he'd jumped at it in the first place bolted to his feet and grabbed Sari's arm. "Forget it!" he said, rushing toward the door. "Let's just get out of here!"

* * *

Bumblebee chased the bike and it's rider down the block until the vehicle stopped by itself and shut down. The kid, now scared out of his wits, jumped off the bike and moved away. His eyes bugged out and looked like he'd just seen a ghost. It was clear he had no been expecting the bike to do that sort of thing on its own.

Bumblebee pulled up behind him and transformed. "Still want to claim it as yours?" he asked.

The kid shook his head.

"Now why don't you tell me how you got your hands on Prowl's bike?" bee asked.

"I didn't steal it," the young man replied, scooting away. "I found it lying on the ground with the keys still in it and I figured..."

"You figured what?"

"It might be an answer to prayer.. or something."

Bumblebee didn't comment. He walked over to the bike and inspected it. There were a few new scratches in it but otherwise it looked like it was in perfect condition. _I wonder why Prowl ditched it and where is he anyway?_

_"_Tell me," he said, turning back to the kid. "You didn't by any chance find a cell phone on or near this thing did you?"

The kid shook his head. Bee stared at him. "Look man, I swear, I didn't see nor touch any cell phones," he insisted. "all I did was take the bike, that's it."

Bee hated to admit it but he believed the kid. _So that must mean Sari still has her phone on her, _he thought. _Unless she dropped it somewhere else. _

He turned back the way he came and once again attempted to contact Sari. She still did not answer but the signal location had not changed. It was near where he'd found the kid and the bike. _But she was not there. _

Well it couldn't hurt to check again. Turning back around he grabbed up the bike which he knew Prowl would want when he found him then headed back the way he came. _Okay. It looks like I'm going to have to repeat the process._

But that didn't happen. A short time later he found the phone... and something else. He knew right away that he had to contact Professor Sumdac.

_

* * *

_

Megatron's words had made Professor Sumdac paranoid. He knew something bad was about to happen and wanted to be sure that whatever it was it never got out. Even though the scientist was a nice and honest man he still had some secrets that the public was better off not knowing about.

He went through the files on his computer, finding all the important ones and deleting them after saving each piece onto a hard disk. Little did he know that Megatron had already gone through most of them and had them saved onto his own computers hard drive. _I knew I should have removed those files a long time ago, but I never figured he'd be clever enough to use them for such a thing. _he slammed his fist onto the desk. _Stupid stupid!_

Just then the phone rang. Sumdac had been so busy concentrating that he jumped at the sudden sound. _Now what? Is that Megatron calling me back to gloat? _

He gingerly picked up the phone and put it to his ear. 'Hello?"

"Professor Sumdac."

He sighed with relief. It wasn't Megatron after all. "Bumblebee?"

"Yeah, hi um.. has Sari called you at all since you contacted us?"

"No she hasn't," he replied. "and I'm considering calling the police and reporting her missing."

"May I advise waiting before you do that?"

"Why?"

"Because I think I might know where she is."

That was a relief. "You do? Where?"

Bumblebee held the green and black piece of metal he found up so he could see it better. "I think she might be on Cybertron."

* * *

The door nearly closed on Prowl and Sari when they dashed out of the lab. It was by some miracle that it did not crush them. Now that they were free from the lab they headed down the corridor in the opposite direction Perceptor had gone. As they walked Sari cast a worried glance at Prowl. His nose had stopped bleeding but it could start up again any time. He reached up and wiped away the dried blood. It stained the edge of his sleeve.

"Doesn't that hurt?" she asked him.

"Only when I touch it," he replied.

"Want me to take a look?" she offered.

He shook his head. "I'm fine."

She looked away. "You don't _look _fine," she muttered.

"Does it matter how I look?"

She didn't know how to answer that.

They were silent for a moment then she asked. "So what are we going to do now? I mean we are free from the mad scientist but we're kind of stuck. How are we going to get back home?"

"I don't know," he replied, shaking his head. He looked down at her. "I was thinking of using a space bridge but I don't know where any of them are and we wouldn't be able to use them anyway." When he saw the look on her face he added, putting an arm around her shoulders. "But don't worry. We'll think of something."

"I hope so."

_I hope so too._

* * *

Oil Slick eventually left him alone, realizing Barricade could not cause anymore trouble at the moment. The police-bot felt better when the cyber ninja stepped away and disappeared.

Barricade wanted to talk to Megatron so he headed back to the control room. On the way he met Slipstream who looked like she was on her way to some place important. "Where are you going?" he asked her.

"That really isn't any of your business," she retorted, turning to face him.

"I know that," he responded. "But that doesn't mean I can't ask anyway."

"You can ask but that doesn't mean I am obligated to tell." she turned away and continued walking.

"If you're thinking of letting him out I would advise against it," he called to her.

She froze in mid step and spun around to face him. "What?" she demanded. "Who said I was going to free Starscream?"

"Nobody," he answered, folding his arms. "I was taking a guess and by the way you reacted and the look on your face my guess was right."

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

The police-bot raised an eye ridge. "I don't?" he asked. "Let me tell you something. I was trained as a ninja and a peace officer. I was taught how to pay attention to details, especially when it came to facial expressions. Because of that I can assure you I know _exactly_ what I am talking about."

"But you can't prove it."

"Let me ask you something," he went on. "Why would you _want _to release Starscream anyway?"

She had no answer. She just folded her arms and glared at him.

"Just let him be," he told her. He honestly did not want the femme to get into trouble, though he didn't know why he cared so much about that. "When he wants to get out he'll do it himself. He's done it before and I know he'll do it again."

"How do you know that?" she wanted to know, looking interested.

"I am not an idiot," he replied. "I have read his files. He is notorious for getting out of situations. He is a lot more clever than you might think."

"Starscream? Clever? Sure!" she laughed at the thought.

"Well he was smart enough to escape from the Elite Guard and he was smart enough to know how to clone himself," he commented, looking her over. "Though I will never understand completely why he did it or how you came out of it.

She folded her arms. "Don't ask."

"I never said I was going to." There was a pause then he asked. "By the way, since you just came out of the control room why don't you tell me what Megatron is doing."

"Why?"

"There is something I wish to discuss with him."

"Don't bother," she said. "He's busy right now."

"With what?"

"How should I know?" she pointed toward the control room. "He's working on the computer with this serious look on his face. If I were you I wouldn't bother him right now. You might get yourself sent to the repair bay." she grinned. "and we both know who the current medic is."

The police-bot chose to ignore that comment. He turned away from her. "Thank you for telling me." then continued on his way.

"Don't do it," she called after him. "I don't want to haul your damaged frame out of there."

"Don't worry about it!" he called to her.

"I wasn't."

_Sure. _

He reached the control room a short time later and poked his head inside. Nobody else was inside except for Megatron who was busy working on something. _What is he doing? _the smaller robot wondered. His optics went up to stare at the screen. He saw what looked like an image of a older human in a green lab coat. _Whose that? and why does Megatron seem so obsessed with him? _

Barricade knew it was best not to ask. Instead he ducked his head back into the hall and turned away thinking. _It's none of my business. I should just pretend I didn't even see that. _

But deep down he knew it was important and he couldn't shake the feeling it gave him.

"What are you doing, Barricade."

Megatron's voice speaking suddenly jolted him out of his thoughts. He looked back toward the Decepticon Commander. "Uh..." he stammered. "N-nothing."

Megatron was already coming toward him and he didn't look happy. "Do not lie to me," he said. "I knew you were spying on me."

Barricade stepped back. "I..I wasn't spying," he protested. "I came here to ask you something."

It was obvious that Megatron did not believe him but he asked anyway. "and what about?"

The police-bots' mind went blank so he had to improvise. "I was wondering if maybe I could do something for you to redeem myself," he said, thinking quickly.

Megatron's face changed. He looked confused. "Like what?'

"I don't know," he said. "Maybe going down to Earth and spying on the Autobots for you..."

"So that you can get help from them?" Megatron demanded. He shook his head. "No, I am afraid that will be impossible."

"I don't have to go down myself," he said. "Maybe you could send somebody with me.."

Now Megatron smiled. "An excellent suggestion," he said. "and I have just the Decepticon for the task."

* * *

Prowl and Sari had to be careful as they made their way out of the building where Lockdown had brought them. Because of a phobia running rampant through machines thanks to Sentinel Prime's scare tactics and lies that organics would give robots diseases they had to avoid contact with Autobots that might have otherwise helped them. There was no sense in getting stepped on for having a dumb moment.

After awhile they finally got outside. Prowl stopped and looked over the scenery. This was in a different part of the planet than where they had been before. he did not know where they were.

Sari looked at him, noticing the look of deep concentration on his face. "Prowl?"

He shook his head, dislodging a nagging thought and took her hand. "Let's go."

_A/N_

_Hmm... this is going to cause some problems..._


	27. Chapter 27

**I seriously feel like I've gotten a bit off track here... **

CHAPTER 27

"And where have you been?"

Bumblebee froze in mid transformation. He turned slightly, his bottom half still in car mode and looked over to where Ratchet stood, leaning against the plant wall with his arms folded. By the look on his face he already knew where he'd gone off to. "Uh.." he stammered, trying to come up with a good excuse. "Out for a drive?"

It was obvious Ratchet did not believe that for a second. "and I bet you were motorcycle shopping too," he said, glancing at the back seat where the bike was sticking out.

Bee transformed fully into standard mode and the bike plopped onto the floor. "I uh.. found that while I was riding around," he explained.

"And you figured you would take it home with you?" Ratchet came toward him, his optics not on Bee but on the thing he'd brought back with him. He stood over the bike and studied it for a moment. "This is Prowl's," he stated.

The younger robot rubbed the back of his head. "Um.. yeah." he answered. "I found it in a neighborhood. Some kid was trying to take it home."

Ratchet didn't comment. He continued to study the bike. He noticed the Autobot symbol etched into it. _This is definitely Prowl's bike. But... where is Prowl? He was very protective of his new found freedom. He wouldn't just let it go like that unless... _"Do you think something might have happened to him?" the medic asked turning back to Bumblebee.

The younger robot nodded. "Actually I believe I know exactly where he is."

Ratchet was surprised. "You do?" he asked. "Where?"

"Cybertron."

"Cybertron?! Come on, Bumblebee, don't be so ridiculous."

"I'm not," the yellow colored Autobot insisted. He took something out of his chest plate and held it up. "See."

Ratchet looked down at the object. When he saw what it was his entire body jolted. He knew exactly what it was. "I..," he said, reaching out to take the object. Bee let it fall into his hand.

A hook. A large silver hook and a small piece of green and black metal.

"Who do we know who is black and green with a hook?" Bumblebee question. "and what is his profession?"

Ratchet glared at him. "Don't take that tone with me," he snapped, closing his fist around the items. "I know exactly who you're talking about. Don't forget I had my own run in with him before you were even protoformed."

"Yeah, yeah," Bee said. "Don't rub it in. I was just saying."

The medic's fist clenched tighter. "But why would Lockdown want to take Prowl?" he asked. "Surely he can't be thinking that he is of any use to him."

"Like I said," Bee replied. "He took him to Cybertron."

Ratchet stared at him suspiciously. "How would you know that?" he demanded.

He shrugged. "Lucky guess."

"But you have no way of proving it," Ratchet pointed out.

"I don't _have _to prove it," the younger robot told him. "It's obvious."

"How is it obvious, if I should be so bold to ask?"

"Who on Cybertron seemed really interested in Sari when she was there?" Bee questioned. "Who couldn't stop staring at her the entire time?"

"You."

Ratchet's blunt statement nearly cause the younger robot to lose his train of thought. "Besides me!" he snapped.

Ratchet had to think about that for a moment. Then it came to him and his optics widened. "No," he said. "It can't be!"

Bumblebee nodded. "I am afraid it is."

The medic shook his head. "That's impossible," he said. "What could Perceptor possibly want with Prowl?"

"Beats me," the young robot answered, shrugging. "But if I was to hazard a guess I would say that maybe he wanted to take him apart to see how he works or something like that." Ratchet stared at him, mouth agape. "What?" he asked. "I'm only guessing."

"Somehow... that guess sees more like the answer." Ratchet turned away and rushed into the into the plant.

"Hey, where are you going?" Bee asked, rushing after him.

"Hopefully to find out that your guess is wrong."

"How are you going to do that?"

The medic didn't even look at him. "By speaking with the very bot himself."

* * *

"Ow!"

Sari's cry of agony made Prowl stop and turn around. For awhile the two had been walking together, hand in hand, then Sari had pried her hand from his and walked behind him. She had seemed nervous when she did this. He hadn't asked because he figured she didn't want to tell him and it didn't really seem like a big deal anyway, though he had wondered why he face had gone red. Now he wasn't so sure. "Are you all right, Sari?" he asked, walking back to her.

She was sitting on the pavement, holding her knee. "I'm fine," she told him. "I just tripped, that's all."

The cyber ninja knelt down. "Let me see," he ordered, reaching out to touch the exposed skin. Her stocking had ripped open but she didn't seem have be seriously injured.

She pulled away from him. "I'm fine," she told him. "It's not serious."

For a moment he just sat there, taking in her strange behavior. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

"No," she said, a little too quickly. "I just don't think you need to look at it." she looked back down at the scrape. "It's not even bleeding anymore."

"Sari," he said.

She looked back at him.

"Have I done something to offend you?" he asked.

"No," she said.

"Then why are you suddenly acting like you would rather be anywhere else but with me?" She made no reply. He didn't expect her to. "Look, if I have done anything to hurt you or make you uncomfortable I am sorry," he went on, standing up. "If you don't want me looking at your damage, okay fine. I won't touch you. I'm sorry if I have."

"Prowl."

He turned away. "Let's keep going," he said, refusing to look at her. "Maybe we can find a space bridge that is still in use."

* * *

"This is ridiculous!" Oil Slick complained as he and Barricade made their way through Detroit's late afternoon traffic. "I should not have to be playing baby sitter for a slag headed Autobot!"

"I would think you'd be happy at the oppertunity," Barricade commented, driving ahead of him. When they'd arrive on the planet he'd noticed his vehicle mode would stand out and so, since he was a police car, he'd scanned the first one he'd come across. It looked somewhat like a Trans-Am. "Since you seem to have it out for me anyway."

"I would have rather been given this job if we weren't in such a place where you could get away easily." the cyber ninja grumbled.

"I can assure you, bulbhead," the police-bot said flatly. "I have no intention of doing such a thing."

"Let me be the judged of that!"

"Be my guest..."

Oil Slick did not comment.

Barricade, who did not feel like talking anyway, didn't mind in the least. He enjoyed the silence. It gave him time to think. His plans didn't involve trying to ditch Oil Slick, though. He knew that was impossible. Instead he thought about some other things, like how he was going to get Megatron to trust him enough to finally give him the insignia. He knew that even if he got it it didn't mean the Decepticon Commander found him completely reliable. It just meant he found him worthy enough to have it.

_But now that I think about it it's not worth the hassle, _he realized. _But I can't go around forever without one. I would rather have something than nothing. _

Being left without a fraction was one of the things he'd feared most of his existence. The feeling of emptiness and loss was already beginning to weigh down on him and he knew, if he didn't get one soon, he might end up like Wasp. Crazy and disillusioned.

_I won't let that happen. I am stronger than Wasp. _

But was he really?

"Hey, Autobot," Oil Slick's voice broke the silence.

For some reason the fact that the cyber ninja still referred to him as an Autobot made him feel better. Even if the others referred to him as an Empty now the chemist refused to do so. He'd told him that he thought calling one an "Autobot" was more of an insult than being called an "Empty" and he wasn't going to change it. What the cyber ninja didn't realize was that it was helping the black robot keep his sanity because it let him know what he was still.... even if he did not have the symbol anymore.

_I can't thank him for that. If I do he might change it. _"What do you want now, bulbhead?" he asked.

"Do you even know where those Autobots are?"

"No, but it should not be too hard to find out."

* * *

Professor Sumdac had finished up with the transfer and deletion of his files and decided that there was nothing else he could do to prevent Megatron from revealing anything that would ruin him. Even though he removed what he could he knew some of those files most likely were already found and taken by Megatron. The Decepticon wasn't an idiot and always seemed one step ahead of everyone else. The chances of him not finding anything before Sumdac took care of them were next to zero.

The only thing he had left to do was wait and see what happened.

He headed into the living room and sat down on the sofa. Now that that problem was dealt with the best it could he had another one to worry about. How had Sari wound up on Cybertron and who was responsible? Now that he knew why she wasn't answering her phone he felt a little better but the fact that she'd wound up being taken made him feel panicky.

Who would want to take Sari to Cybertron and why? he asked himself. What could possibly be the reason? He thought about it for a great deal of time but nothing came to him.

* * *

Iacon's street were busy with later afternoon traffic. Even though the sky was dark and the stars could be seen Prowl assured Sari that it was indeed the afternoon. Since he had lived on the planet for such a long time he knew what time of day it was even without a clock or sunlight. Sari wished she could do that but the best she could do was take his word for it and not question his knowledge of the time passage of his home planet.

She also had to trust that he knew where they were going because she did not know then that he wasn't exactly sure himself. After walking around the city for what seemed like hours she was more lost than before. Prowl on the other hand seemed to know his way around as if he'd walked those streets many times. She wasn't sure where he was taking her but she had to trust him. It wasn't like he was going to lead her into trouble. He obviously didn't want any himself since he was so small and all the other pedestrians were giant robots. It was lucky they hadn't been noticed yet or stepped on.

Sari wondered how long that would last though. Any second now one of those Autobots would look down and spot the two techno organics and freak out, causing a stampede of panicked machines. Sari didn't even want to begin imagining the outcome of such an occurrence.

"So where are we going?" she asked after a moment. The cyber ninja did not answer right away. Instead he paused for a moment and took a careful look around. He was frowning. "Prowl?"

"This doesn't look right," he commented, still refusing to look at her. "Some of the buildings are missing." he spotted a lamppost and jumped up, grabbing it about halfway up. He balance himself on a piece of metal sticking out and took another careful look around. This time Sari didn't say a word but instead chose to wait until he came back down to ask questions.

He stayed where he was a bit longer than she expected. Finally after an eternity he jumped back down, landing easily beside her. "Prowl, what's wrong?"

He still refused to answer her. The fact bothered her. She grabbed his arm and yanked on it. "Why aren't you saying anything?" she demanded.

Finally he spoke and the words he said were not what she was hoping to hear. "I don't know where we are."

* * *

He almost lost him. More than once actually. Whether is was intentional or not was left to interpretation. To Oil Slick he was purposely trying to get rid of him. To Barricade, Oil Slick was too busy looking for reasons to get him into trouble and focusing on the idea so much, that he kept losing track of his charge. Not that the black robot would have minded if he had gotten lost and never found him again. The only thing that kept him from doing it on purpose was the realization that Megatron could find him and take him out easily and the Autobots he was trying to find wouldn't exactly take him in and hide him if he went to them for help. It was best if he avoided both problems and just did what he was told, instead of doing what he really wanted.

"Slow down," the ninja bot ordered.

"Speed up," Barricade shot back.

"No, _you_ are going to slow down!"

"What are you going to do if I don't?" the police-bot demanded. "Make me?"

Oil Slick didn't answer. Instead he pulled in front of the bigger robot, as if doing so would slow him down. Barricade felt himself smirking. This guy was an idiot. He was way too small to slow him down. But then Oil Slick did something unexpected. He let loose a river of black oil onto the road, making it slippery.

Barricade lost traction and slide back and forth, trying to stay in a straight line. It was a lost cause. He spun out and crashed into a telephone pull. Oil Slick moved up beside him. He was laughing a mocking laugh. "I told you," he taunted. "You should have listened to me."

Barricade transformed and glared at him. "Now look what you did!" he accused. "I can't use my vehicle mode now! Somebody is going to see me!"

"Not my fault," the cyber ninja informed him. "I told you to slow down."

He came very close to tearing the bike apart but help himself back. "You should not have done that," he said instead. "Now we're going to draw attention to ourselves and Megatron said to keep a low profile."

The motorcycle bot backed up slightly then transformed. "Don't blame me for this, Autobot," he said, stepping dangerously close. "I told you to slow down but you did not listen."

Barricade couldn't help himself. He shoved Oil Slick back. The cyber ninja lost his balance and fell. "This _is _your fault, the black robot growled, standing over him with his hands on his hips. "I had a very good reason for driving so fast but you were too stupid to listen when I tried to tell you. Now you just made the entire mission twice as complicated as it already is and if Megatron asks, which I know he will, I will tell him what you did."

Oil Slick kicked at him, catching him in the stomach plating. The black robot moved back, his arm covering the spot. The cyber ninja pounced at him, knocking him to the pavement.

"We'll see who gets the blame for this, Empty!"

That did it,. Hearing himself being called that once again was too much. Something inside him snapped. He punched the glass bubble protecting the other robots head, causing it to burst. Then, before he could think of the consequences he grabbed Oil Slick by the neck and started squeezing.

* * *

Back on the ship Megatron decided to begin his revenge on Sumdac. Now that he had everything he needed it was zero hour for the inventor. "Time to pay for my fifty stellar cycles of humiliation, Professor."

And then he reached up and typed a command into the computer. "But first why don't we have a little fun?"

* * *

Professor Sumdac knew something was wrong before he even left his living quarters. The first inkling that something was wrong was the door. It refused to open when he pressed the button. _Strange. _he thought, staring at the keypad. _Why won't this open? _he tried another code and the door slid open with a _whoosh _but when he started to step out it slammed shut in his face. When he stepped back the doors slid open again.

Thinking it might have been a glitch he stepped toward them again... and the doors slammed shut once more.

_What's wrong with this door? _he wondered, starting at it.

Suddenly the door started slamming, opening and crashing closed. He stepped further back, freaked out by strange and unexpected movement. Just then all the appliances in the room went off at the same time, making him jump. He spun a round and stared wide eyed at each item, not sure what was happening.

_Is this place haunted?_

No that was nonsense. Something else was happening here and it didn't take him very long to figure out what it was.

"Megatron!"

He heard the TV switch on and spun around to face it. All he could see was static, as if the cable had gone out. Suddenly for a very brief second Megatron's grinning face appeared on the screen then blipped out. When it did everything went back to normal.

Sumdac moved away from the TV and dashed out of the room and down the hall. This was it. His problems were starting up all over again. _But how did he get into the system? _he reached the elevator and pressed the button. The doors opened and he climbed in. He pressed the button for the basement level and waited as the machine slowly descended from floor to floor. It seemed to be running slower than usual. "I have to figure out how he got in," he said out loud. "and stop him from doing it again."

The door opened and he took off down a darkened all, his destination waiting for him at the other end.

* * *

Sari stared at Prowl in disbelief. "You don't know where we are?!" she exclaimed.

He nodded then looked around himself again. "When we left the building I sensed that we weren't in a familiar place but I figured that I might have been wrong and that I would find some place familiar once we started walking." he pointed at a row of buildings. "Those establishments over there looked familiar and I thought I knew exactly where I was but.." he pointed to some other buildings. "It turned out I was wrong. A lot of the places around here look the same. It was an honest mistake."

Sari said nothing. The look on her face told him enough. "I can't believe this!" she shouted, starling him. "All this time I thought you knew exactly where we were! This isn't my planet so of course I wouldn't know.. but you, you lived here most of your life! You should know where everything is."

"I haven't been to Cybertron in years," he told her. "A lot of things have changed since then."

"So what are we going to do now?" she demanded, clenching her fists at her sides.

"We keep going," he replied. "Maybe then we'll find something familiar, like a land mark."

The girl almost argued with him about it. She felt that if they kept on walking they would get even more lost but she chose not to say a word. Instead she nodded. "I guess that's about all we can do."

_A/N_

_I am not totally sure what Megatron is planning on doing to Sumdac yet. I am working on that but I would not mind getting help. _


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Professor Sumdac made it into the room seconds before the doors shut on him. He breathed a sigh of relief when he was safely in the room, away from the prying eyes of the security cameras. It wasn't hard to figure out that Megatron most likely hacked into the entire system, even the camera's and was watching his every move, through them. The crazy glitch in the TV screen told him that. _I knew I should have changed all the codes after I got back, _he thought, crossing the room and pulled out a wheeled chair that sat in front of a large computer monitor. _But I never thought he'd do this. How could I have been so stupid? _

He sat down in the chair and fired up the computer. This one was slightly different than his other monitors in that it wasn't hooked up to the rest of the system. While it was able to enter the other system it could not be hacked into by the other computers. It was on a power source all it's own.

Hopefully Megatron hadn't figured that out.

He activated the machine and quickly hacked into the other system. _Let's see how much damage he's done. _

But the moment he tried to access the other system his computer blue screened and reset itself. When the computer was fully loaded and he could see all the icons on the desk top he tried once again to get into the other system. Like before the computer blue screened and restarted. Right away he knew what the problem was. He could not access the other system. He was locked out.

_But why? _he wondered. _Megatron shouldn't even know about this computer! _He tried once again, using a different pass code. This time he was able to get in for a few seconds then the computer flashed to a black screen with a yellow sad face before it blue screened for a third time.

"No!"

"I'm sorry, Professor," a voice said, startling him. "Were you trying to contact me?"

Just then the computer screen went blank then lit up purple. A shadowy figure outlined it. Sumdac knew who it was. He knew that outline anywhere."Megatron!" he exclaimed. "How did you-"

"It was rather easy, my very clever pet," the Decepticon cut him off. "You're pathetic Earth technology is easy to hack into, including the systems I did not know about."

"Why are you doing this to me?" he demanded.

"I already told you why," Megatron replied. "Because of what you did."

"I didn't do anything! It's not my fault your head didn't have a body!"

"You could have looked for it."

Sumdac frowned. "It wasn't like your head was active at the time."

"That does not give you an excuse."

* * *

Perceptor returned to his lab to find his specimens gone. He stood in the doorway for a moment, his optics locked on the empty spot on the table, trying to figure out how this could have happened. Prowl, being a techno organic, should not have been able to get free from the metal straps. It was illogical.

_**Unless his new body has powers I didn't know about,**_Perceptor thought, walking over to the table**. **_**and if it does, that just makes him a more interesting test subject**__. _he turned away from the table and headed out the door.

Maybe he would be able to find them. They couldn't have gotten very far.

* * *

"Maybe we should ask for directions?" Sari suggested.

"Sari, didn't you hear what I said before?' he asked, turning to her. "We can't ask anyone because we might start a stampede. "

The girl folded her arms. "What is it with men and asking for directions?" she asked. "Well what else can we do? We're lost. It couldn't hurt to ask-"

"Couldn't hurt?" he cut her off. "How about being stepped on?"

"Prowl, I'm surprised at you," Sari said. "I am sure that not all of the robots are scared of organics. We just have to look for one that's friendly or-" she activated her battle gear. "Maybe I can pretend to be a full robot and ask somebody like this."

He had nothing to say about that except. "Then I guess you're going to have to be the one who does it, since I don't have that ability."

"I don't know about that," she said, resting her hand on his chest. "You might. You're just not aware of it."

"He looked down at her hand. "Just because I am like you now doesn't mean we have the same abilities."

"True," she consented. "But it would be cool if we did." she dropped her hand and stepped around him. "Now stand back. I have directions to get." then she marched toward the closest robot and began her interrogation.

As it turned out her hunch was right. With the battle armor on, nobody thought twice about talking to her. They actually thought she was a robot. Prowl stood back, watching her question robot after robot, fascinated. He hadn't really expected her idea to work. _I should give her more credit. She obviously knows what she's doing, _he smiled. _I guess I'm just used to her being a kid, even though she's been this way for a year. That incident with Soundwave should have told me that. _

A few minutes later she walked back to him. He noticed she was smiling. "What?" he asked.

"I know where we should be going," she replied.

"Where?"

She took his hand and led him back the way they had come. "You took a wrong turn," she told him. "We should be going in the opposite direction."

* * *

It would have been better. Much much better if Megatron had chosen anybody but Oil Slick, Barricade was thinking as he continued trying to break the cyber ninja's neck. He knew choking wouldn't do any good because robots didn't breath but if he could take off the other robots head.

Oil Slick to his own credit was putting a a huge fight, kicking and even trying to bite the other robot. He wasn't accomplishing much but at least he wasn't just giving up.

Barricade might have actually done it.. had not a lady and her kid walked by. The moment the two humans saw the robots, they stopped and stared. The police-bot looked over at them and instantly lost his grip. Oil Slick took that operitunity to shove the black robot off of him. He might have done something else too.. had he not seen the humans staring at them, open mouthed.

Now this was awkward..

"Uh...," Oil Slick began, thinking quickly. "Hi.."

The kid was the first to recover. He started crying. His mother quickly picked him up and held him in her arms, but kept her eyes on the two robots. She didn't look happy. "What kind of way is that to act out in the open?" she demanded. "You should be ashamed of yourselves."

Oil Slick glared at her. He raised his arm which held a canister of fear gas. He would have thrown it at the annoying humans but Barricade stopped him by grabbing his arm. "That wouldn't be a good idea," he discouraged.

"Why not?" the other robot demanded, glaring at him.

"Do you want the Autobots to know we're here?" Barricade demanded. "He said keep a low profile and sending fear gas into the neighborhood will only attract attention."

"Good," Oil Slick said. "I've been looking for a fight."

"You would disobey Megatron's orders?"

No, he would not. Oil Slick lowered his arm and put the canisiter away. "Oh you're a clever one," he said. "But don't think that excuse will work all the time."

The black robot didn't respond, instead he turned back to the humans. "We are sorry," he told them. "We just had a little disagreement. I promise we'll have our fights in private from now on."

Oil Slick snorted. "You make it sound like we're _married_."

Barricade ignored that comment. The human mother seemed happy with the police-bot's promise. She nodded then walked back the way she had come. When they were gone Oil Slick started getting on the other robot's case. "What was that all about?" he demanded. "You talked to them like they mattered."

"They matter if we want to continue keeping a low profile," the police-bot told him. "If I act nice to them they won't tell anybody. It's obvious these humans are too stupid to see us as a threat or they think we're Autobots."

"I don't want to be mistaken for an _Autobot_!" Oil Slick complained.

"Oh, would you rather the humans freak out and call on the Autobots for help and then tell them that we are here when we are supposed to be keeping a low profile and Megatron doesn't want them to know we are here?" Barricade demanded, putting his hands on his hips. "Because if you really want to be in trouble for disobeying Megatrons direct orders go right ahead and shoot them."

Oil Slick started to make a come back then shut his mouth. He knew the other robot made a good point. "Fine," he said. "Whatever. Let's just get moving."

* * *

"Are you heading to Cybertron?" Bumblebee asked Ratchet who was in the repair bay going through his spare parts. "Is that what you meant by speaking to Perceptor in person?"

"No," Ratchet said, his voice loaded with sarcasm. "I meant I was going to send him a text message, of course I meant I was going to speak with him in person!"

"But we're not allowed to return to Cybertron!" Bee protested, remembering what Ultra Magnus had said before they left the planet. "If you go there to talk to him you'll get in trouble."

"Don't you think I know that?" the medic demanded.

"If you know why are you going to do it?"

Ratchet stopped. He looked over at the younger robot with the most serious expression Bumblebee had ever seen. "Because this is something that should not be allowed to happen," he told him. "I do not care what Perceptor's excuses might be, what he is doing is not being funded. Ultra Magnus already said that Sari and Prowl were off limits to any kind of study. If Perceptor is responsible for their disappearance then he is breaking the law."

"And probably doesn't care." Bee pointed out. When he saw the look on the medic's face he said. "Oh come on, you know the guy deleted all of his emotions so he could gain more knowledge. He probably doesn't even care that he broke the law."

Ratchet headed for the door after putting some tools inside his chest plate. "That's why we are going there to remind him."

* * *

Prowl followed Sari back the way they had come and then down another street. Now he found that he recognized the area, especially the local energon bar. Sari also noticed the building and stopped to stare at it.

"You might not want to go in there," Prowl told her.

"How come?"

"It's a bar," he answered.

"You have bars on your planet?" she asked, putting her hands on her hips. "I thought all you transformers ate was energon."

"Yes, that's true" prowl replied. "But there ware many different types of energon."

"Oh really?" she question, looking at him. "Like what?"

"Well there is low grade," he explained. "That is usually taken when you need a quick pick me up. Then there is medium grade which is the average type of energon consumes when you are low on power."

"What about high grade?" she questioned. She had heard about high grade and the information she'd gathered made it sound... strange.

"Uh...," he thought for a moment then said. "It's advised not to be consumed in large quantities because it can overload your systems."

Sari looked over at the bar just as a brown Autobot staggered out of the building. "It looks like nobody takes that advice," she commented.

"No, not really." he turned away. "Let's keep moving."

"Prowl," shesaid as she followed him down the street. "Speaking of high grade have you ever..."

"No!" he cut her off before she could finish the sentence. "Never!" But he was lying. He had, many times in his distant past. It was not anything to be proud of, especially since it used to get him into a lot of trouble. But who could really blame him? After all he'd gone through he'd felt justified.

The look on Sari's face seemed to say that she did not believe him. He ignored her, not about to crack and admit that he had. Instead he said. "I recognize this part of the city. The Autobot you spoke to was right. We had gone the wrong way."

"Prowl," she said. "Why are you lying?"

"What?" he looked back at her. Her eyes were glowing. This wasn't good. "Lying about what? I _do_ know where we are."

"Not that," she replied, walking over to him. "Why did you lie about never drinking high grade?"

For a moment he stared at her, unable to say anything. He didn't know how to respond to such a question. "I.. I don't want to talk about it," he said, turning away. "It's not something I am proud of."

Her eyes powered down. "Why not?"

"Why don't you read my mind and find out?" he snapped.

Sari stared at him, surprised by his outburst. She hardly ever saw him angry or upset. "I don't want to read your mind," she responded.

"You didn't seem all that hesitant to find out if I was lying just now," he pointed out.

"I am sorry. I was just wondering why my question bothered you."

"It bothers me because it was a mistake," he responded, refusing to look at her. "I was going through something at that time in my life and thought I would be able to erase it if I.." he shook his head. "It's not important. Just forget I said anything."

"Okay."

But they both knew she wouldn't.

"Let's just keep going."

* * *

They were no longer in the building. It did not take a genius to figure that out. Perceptor stood at the entrance to the Council Building, looking out over the city. He was picking up a very faint energy signature. Yes, they were gone, but they had not left the plant.

_**You are making this harder on the both of us. You should not have done this. Now I will be forced to resort to more cruel alternatives. **_he stepped out of the building and headed into the city.

* * *

"Megatron, this is ridiculous," Sumdac shouted, hoping that if he sounded like he had some kind of authority the Decepticon would take him seriously. "I am not to blame for what happened to you!"

"No? I beg to differ." Megatron leaned toward the screen. He almost looked like he was going to come out of it. "Who was the one who used me for their own selfish gain? Who was the one who still used it even after you knew I was still online? Who was the one who never bothered trying to find my body?"

Isaac didn't reply. He was too busy wracking his brain for the proper response. "What did you want me to do?" he finally asked. "Send out a search party? All I ever found was your head! I was only a kid at the time! How was I supposed to know you had a body?"

"It should have been obvious," Megatron retorted. "Even your tiny human brain should have been able to figure it out."

"I was only ten years old!"

"Excuses, that's all you ever give." the Decepticon glared at him. "But now that you've gotten everything you wanted I think it's time for this perfect little life of yours to end. Starting with all the technology you ever made. How would you like it if I turned it all off for you?"

Sumdac didn't even want to imagine the outcome of that. His machines sold all over the world. If they all went offline at the same time..... "Don't do it, please."

"Your please are too late," Megatron said. "It's time your little kingdom came to an end."

And then the screen blacked out, leaving Professor Isaac Sumdac with a huge case of paranoia.

* * *

Ratchet and Bumblebee drove through the cities late afternoon traffic toward Sumdac Systems. Their destination was the space bridge. "I never said you could come with me," the medic snapped at Bumblebee. "Your presence won't help."

"I don't care," Bee told him. "Sari is my best friend. I don't want anything to happen to her."

"What about Prowl?"

"Prowl can take care of himself," he retorted. "I don't need to worry about him."

Ratchet put on the brakes. Bee, who was behind him, slammed into him. "Hey! What did you do that for?" he demanded.

The medic turned himself around and faced the other car. "I am only saying this one so you had better listen carefully," he said. "I don't know what your problem with Prowl is but you had better get over it. If it has something to do with Sari, you had better realize that maybe she just isn't interested. I am not sure how you feel about her but I have an idea. If she does not feel the same way you had better get over it. Nobody needs your jealousy to get in the way of your thinking."

"What do _you _know about it?" Bee snapped.

"Trust me, kid, I know plenty," Ratchet responded. "Maybe more than you think."

"I doubt that."

"I don't really care," Ratchet informed him. "Just try to keep that little problem on the back burner. The last thing anyone needs is your feelings getting in the way of helping one of your comrades. You don't have to like somebody to help them. You just do it because that is your job." He pulled ahead and Bee quickly followed. "Think about it. You might learn something."

* * *

"Wait!" Barricade reached out and grabbed Oil Slick from behind and pulled him back out of the street.

The cyber ninja looked back at him with an annoyed look but before he could say a word something shot past them. An ambulance and a small, yellow car. They shot past, going well above the speed limit. Oil Slick watched them go past, noticing both vehicles had a very familiar logo painted on them. "That's our targets!" he shouted, breaking loose and transforming into vehicle mode. "Come on, Autobot!"

"How? I can't transform thanks to you," Barricade said, putting his hands on his hips.

"Well then I guess you'll have to run," the cyber ninja then backed up and shot down the street in full pursuit of the two Autobots.

The police-bot watched him take off, debating whether to just stay where he was or follow. It didn't take long for him to make up his mind. If he got rid of Oil Slick he would be in trouble. But why should he care? If Oil Slick ignored Megatron's orders it wouldn't be his fault.

_Yeah, but he won't blame the bulbhead, he would blame will you._

With that in mind Barricade transformed, though it took longer than usual because of the damage and took off after the Decepticon.

* * *

"Hey, what's that?" Sari said, pointing.

Prowl looked where she indicated. He saw a building with statues erected outside of it. For a moment he didn't say anything because he was still angry at her for reading his mind. Finally he replied. "It's a memorial building."

She looked at him. "A memorial building?"

He nodded. "Yes, they erect statues of fallen heroes and place them within and without of the building so everyone can see who gave their lives to protect our freedom."

She was silent for a moment then said. "I wonder if you're in there."

"Why would I be in there?" he asked her. 'I'm not dead."

"I know," she said. "But maybe.."

He didn't reply.

But now Sari was curious. She stared at the building a moment longer then stepped into the street and started to cross over to the other side. Prowl didn't really want to go into the building, but he couldn't very well leave Sari alone. So he sighed and ran to catch up with her.

She looked back at him and smirked. "Decided to come in after all?" she asked.

He didn't give her a reply.

_A/N_

_Ugh I need to get something done. I'm starting to have too many sub plots here. I'm gonna do a mash. That should fix things. _


	29. Chapter 29

CHAPTER 29

Ratchet became aware of the two vehicles trailing them not too long after they pulled up behind him and the younger Autobot. He had been expecting some kind of trouble on the way to the tower and here it was in green and black. This only confirmed what Jazz had said since the motorcycle sported the Decepticon logo on its front. The car behind it, a police vehicle, wouldn't have seemed all that suspicious except for the fact that it took every turn he and Bumblebee did. If it had a Deceptiocn symbol it was hiding it rather well but that symbol might be hidden under the damage to the hood. The medic was tempted to tell Bee about the tailing robots but chose not to. It would not do the younger robot any good if he knew that they were being followed, not with all of the other things on his mind.

As it turned out he did not have too. Bumblebee figured it out all by himself.

"Umm, Ratchet," he said after a moment.

"Yeah?"

"Do you get the sneakingest suspicion that we're being followed?" he asked.

"Whatever gave you that idea?"

"Well it might to do with the fact that there are two strange looking vehicles I have never seen before following us and the fact that I am picking up an energy signature," he replied, his tone saying it was rather obvious.

"Oh. Well then yes," Ratchet told him. "We _are_ being followed."

The younger robot didn't even sound panicky as he asked. "What are we going to do about it?"

"I can't really say at the moment," the medic responded.

"How about we take them out?" Bee asked, putting on the brakes. "Right here and right now."

"Don't be a gear head!" Ratchet shouted, a bit disturbed by Bumblebee's sudden surge of motivation. He sounded like he was actually looking _forward _to beating on something.. "If they know that we know that they're following us they'll either attack us before we're ready or they'll run away and right now I don't want either option."

The younger Autobot sped up until he was driving beside Ratchet. "So what are we going to do?" he asked. "Let them find out where we're going?"

"They won't find out where we're going."

"How do you know?"

"Trust me, kid. I do."

* * *

Prowl did not want to enter the memorial building and he tried to keep Sari from going in as well. But the girl had her mind made up and she was going to go in, whether he wanted to or not. "Come on, Prowl," she said, grabbing his arm. "I just want to see who they're remembering in there."

"Why would you want to see that?" he asked her as she practically drug him inside.

"Because it's interesting," she responded, looking up at him. "and I'd like to learn soemthing about the other half of my family."

"You are fascinated by the strangest things."

Once they were inside both stopped to stare. Statues of the fallen lined the walls in neat rows. Sari looked at one then another, wondering who these transformers were and what they did to receive such an honor. She noticed at the base of the statues were brass nameplates but the names were in a weird language and she couldn't decipher it.

"Who is that?" she asked, pointing at a large robot.

Prowl knew right away who this hero was without reading the nameplate. "That is Wingsaber," he replied.

"What did he do?"

"A lot," he said, not really wanting to go into the robot's history.

But Sari wasn't going to let him get off with such a simple answer. "Like what?" she continued.

He sighed. "More than there's time to explain," he replied. "I'll tell you all about him once we're back on Earth."

She nodded and let his arm go, running ahead. The cyber ninja, who didn't want to stay in the building longer than he had to, ran to catch up.

A short time later they entered another room that looked like most of the statues had been put up recently. Sari stared at one after another, wondering who these robots were and what they did that gave them such an honor. Prowl didn't really want to be there but then he saw something that gave him pause.

Sari took her eyes off the statues and turned to ask him a question. She noticed the look on his face. "Prowl?" she said.

But he ignored her. Instead he walked past her and out of the room. She watched him go, a worried expression on her face. "Prowl!" she called, going after him.

She found him in the next room, staring up at one of the statues. When she looked up at it she saw why he'd come there. The statue was.. him! But not him in his current state. This was him in his robot form after he'd received his upgrade. It was in full detail all the way down to the visor. Sari took her eyes off of it and looked at the cyber ninja.

She saw a strange look on his face. He seemed to be upset or.. sad?

"Prowl?"

The cyber ninja didn't seem to hear her. Instead he walked closer to the statue and studied it some more. She stood back, realizing he wanted some space. This was something he had to deal with himself.

_So this is it, _he thought as he took in every detail. _It's over. There is no going back to that anymore. _he looked down at his hands, studying every detail on his fingers. His palms were covered by material so he studied the detal of that instead. _I have to move on now. Nobody can bring it back. I can't return no matter how much I want to. _

_But... _he looked up at the statue one more time. _If that part really has ended for me what is the purpose for this new act? What am I supposed to do now?_

But the statue could not tell him that. Nobody could. If he wanted to know he had to find it out for himself. He closed his eyes and clenched his fists at his sides. Now that he had seen this that small hope that maybe he could become it again was gone. He knew it would be best if he stayed the way he was. Everyone on Cybertron who did not know the truth still believed he was a dead hero. If he attempted to change that nobody would understand why and he would be judged and belittled.

While he didn't care much for his reputation, he did not want to be subjected to that and he did not want his friends and comrades to deal with it either. He opened his eyes and looked at the statue once more. _This is the end for us then. Nothing is left for me to accomplish in that form. I can't do back. I can only go forward. If there is a reason for how I am now I will find it for myself. _he walked over to the statue and touched the base. "Good bye, old life," he whispered before removing it and letting it fall limply to his side.

Now he turned away from the memorial and faced Sari. She saw the look on his face and drew the wrong conclusion. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I didn't mean to upset you. If I had known that they had a statue of you in here I never would have come in." she looked ready to burst into tears. "It was a stupid mistake. Why do I always-"

Prowl put a hand on her shoulder. She stopped talking and looked at him. His face held no sign of ill will toward her. "It's not your fault," he told her. "You don't have to apologize. It was for the best."

"Huh?"

He pulled her into a hug, surprising her. "Thank you," he whispered in her ear. "This is what I needed. If we had never come in here.." his voice trailed off and he never finished the sentence. But Sari knew what he meant. Something had changed. For the better.

* * *

Megatron had not contacted Sumdac again in the past hour but the Professor was too afraid to go out the door. He feared that if he did, everything would go crazy again and he would not be able to get out. It was bad enough he had other things to worry about, like all of his machines going off at once. But his daughter was also missing, supposedly on Cybertron for whatever reason, and the Decepticon wanted to reveal all of his secrets to the public along with that world wide turn off.

He did not want any of that to happen but he had no way of preventing it. Not where he was. Even the computer was against him, having since shut down after Megatron's message and refusing to switch back on. He had two choices. Stay in there and wait for Megatron to keep to his word or go out there and risk everything to stop it. Option two was no better than option one in his opinion because both would end in dire consequences.

_But I can't just stay in here and wait, _he reason, pacing back and forth. _It would not do anyone any good. I have to get out of here and try to stop it. _

_But what can you do? You're just a little human. Megatron is a powerful machine, with superior knowledge and technology to your own. _

_I don't care. If I don't do anything everything will be ruined._

_Do you want to stop him because of selfish reasons or do you want to stop him because of everything he can do to the people on the planet?_

_Both, _he admitted. _A little of both anyway. I cannot allow Megatron to have his way. He's hurt enough people already. _

Then, with his mind made up, he jumped off the computer chair and walked purposely toward the door. When he reached it it opened as if nothing was wrong and he stepped out.

* * *

"I think we'd better get out of here now," Prowl said, when he and Sari broke from the embrace. "Something tells me that this place isn't safe."

Sari nodded. "Good idea." she had been feeling the same way. The statues were starting to make her nervous, especially the one dedicated to Prowl. "We still have to find a space bridge and get back home before-"

**"You will not be going anywhere."**

The two techno organics froze. Prowl looked over his shoulder. Perceptor stood in the doorway to the room. "Sparks," he cursed. "How did he find us so quickly?"

Sari couldn't answer that and Perceptor didn't give any explanation either. He stepped into the room, his intent clear. **"Do not bother trying to escape," **he told them. **"There is no other way out." **his optic focused on the statue of Prowl's robot body. **"I will have to speak to Ultra Magnus about that. It is wrong to lie to the public about you."**

Prolw glared at him, his hand tightly grasping Sari's wrist. Not only had what the scientist done earlier upset him but the comment he'd made about the memorial was uncalled for. The cyber ninja whispered to her. "When he gets close enough, shoot him."  
She stared at him. "What? I can't do that. He's-"

"He's going to kill us if you don't," he said, looking back at her. "Do you want to die a slow and painful death under the guise of science?"

"Of course not," she told him. "But if I shoot him we could get in trouble."

"Since when do you care about getting in trouble?" he asked her. "If never bothered you before." he smirked. "I still remember all the stuff you and Bumblebee would get into against direct orders. Besides this isn't about the law. This is about living. Perceptor isn't even supposed to be doing this to begin with. So shooting him is justified and it's self defense."

She saw the logic in that and nodded. "Ok." she opened her hands.

By then Perceptor was almost upon them. Prowl braced himself then shot sideways the same instant that Sari let loose a volley of energy orbs, aimed directly for the scientist's head.

He had to duck to avoid being hit by them and that's when Prowl saw his chance. He jerked on Sari's arm and charged toward the exit.

But before they got there the scientist turned around and tried to block them. Sari twisted around and threw another orb at him. This time it hit it's target. Perceptors yelled in pain then crashed to the floor.

Prowl jerked on Sari's arm and she turned around.

* * *

"They know we're following them."

_Oh great. Now the Autobot is psychic_. "How can they know we're following them?" Oil Slick demanded. "Is it because they see a giant robot running after them or something? Namely you?"

"They see no giant robot because I am in vehicle mode," Cade told him in a flat voice.

"I thought you said you couldn't transform."

"It was a bad idea trying," the ex-Autobot admitted. "I don't think I'll be able to change back now."

"Man, you're pathetic."

"It wasn't my fault," he reminded the cyber ninja. "You're the one who made this happen."

"Sure, place the blame on somebody else. You Autobots are all the same."

_So I'm an Autobot again. _he thought. _Well at least he's not calling me an Empty anymore. _"Forget about me," Barricade said. "Our cover is blown. They know we are here."

"How would they know if you're in vehicle mode?"

"We're too close, they must have picked up our energy signatures."

"You're paranoid," Oil Slick told him. "If they had they would have done something by now."

"No, they would not have," the police-bot told him. "They are pretending they don't know they're being tailed because they're planning on surprising us once they get to their destination. When they arrive they will transform into standard mode and start shooting at us."

"Oh and what else are they going to do, oh wise one?" the Decepticon cyber ninja said sarcastically. "Call for back up which will come up behind us and box us in?"

Just then a large green motor vehicle pulled up behind them. "Yes, I believe so," Barricade replied in a dead pan voice. "It's quite obvious actually. You just don't want to admit it."

"Shut up!"

"Okay, fine believe what you wish but if you were paying attention to your surroundings you would realize I am right."

"Shut up!" Oil Slick shouted. "Don't patronize me!"

"Then try paying attention."

"I _am_ paying attention." the cyber ninja saw the two Autobots they were following pull into the parking lot of the Sumdac Tower. "Oh no, you're not getting away that easily!"

He accelerated and shot into the parking lot just as the two Autobots transformed. Ratchet turned around and, seeing him coming, charged at him and punched him square in the fase. The Decepticon flew across the parking lot and slammed into Barricade who had just pulled up behind him. "I told you so," the ex-Autobot said.

"Oh shut up," Oil Slick said, using Barricade's hood to help himself get to his feet.

At that moment the green car pulled up behind Barricade, thus blocking him from leaving the parking lot. "Uh oh."

"Oh great," the Decepticon said, looking from one group of the Autrobots to another. "What now?"

"Better get ready, Decepticreep," Ratchet said, raising his arms and activating his magnets. "Because you just got in way over your head."

"Yeah," the green car said transforming into a huge transformer. "prepaire for pain."

Oil Slick knew he was in way over his head. He slapped Barricade's side. "I could use some help here," he said.

"No can do," Barricade told him flatly. "I can't transform thanks to you."

"Don't give me that excuse and transform!"

"Do you not understand Cybertronian?" Barricade demanded. "I can't!"

"You're useless."

"Umm excuse me," Bumblebee said, interrupting him. "But I tihik you should be more worried about us than your partner." he changed his hands into stingers. "Because we're the ones who are going to kick your sorry skidplate."

Oil Slick turned to them. "Not if I can help it." he pulled out his own weapon. A chain attached to large metal barrels. "Come on, Autobots. Come and get some!"

* * *

Prowl heard Perceptor getting up off the floor. Sari's blast had knocked him over but their bought time was running out. They couldn't fight the scientist in the building because of all the statues but if they didn't, they would wind up being taken back to the Autobots scientist's lab. Prowl was not going to let that happen.

Sari meanwhile was looking over her shoulder and saw Perceptor getting up and go into pursuit. "He's coming after us!"

"I know that," he told her, looking grimly ahead. "But there's nothing we can do about it in here."

"I could shoot him again," she suggested, raising her hand which held an energy orb.

"No," Prowl said. "Not in here. You might accidentally hit one of the statues."

"Our lives are more important than some old statues!"" she protested.

"You can't do that!" he told her. "Not only would it attract unwanted attention but it would also be defiling the memory of all the Cybertronians who gave their lives during the Great War."

"Oh." she could understand that. If somebody went and broke the Lincoln Memorial she'd be angry too. "I'm sorry. I should have been more sensitive."

Prowl looked over his shoulder as if to say something like don't worry about it but then he saw Perceptor gaining on them and said nothing. He just jerked on her arm which motivated her to run faster.

**"You will not be getting out of here," **the scientist said. **"Unless it's in a jar."**

_Not if I can help it, _Prowl thought. But how was he going to keep Perceptor away? It wasn't like he could shoot energy orbs out of his hands. It seemed like the only time his abilities worked was when he was angry or touching a mindless machine...

"Of course!"

"What is it?" Sari asked. He let go of her hand. "Prowl?"

"Keep running!" he ordered, turning around and dashing in the opposite direction. "I have an idea."

'Prowl!" she shouted, looking back at him.

"Don't worry! I will be fine!"

The girl contemplated whether to follow him or do what he said. She was afraid he might get killed but he had said he would be fine and she would have to trust him. She kept going. _Whatever you're planning I hope it doesn't get you killed, _she thought.

00000

Bumblebee came at Oil Slick, firing off shot after shot of electricity from his stingers. The Decepticon cyber ninja dodged from side to side, avoiding the firepower easily. because he trained under master Yoketron and because he was older than Bumblebee he was more skilled. He got close enough to the other robot to whack him in the chest with his weapon. Bee took it squarely and slammed into the ground.

Ratchet stepped around him and fired his magnets at the ninja. Oil Slick avoided this by reverting back to vehicle mode and swerving to avoid it.

Meanwhile Barricade was contemplating whether to just let Oil Slick fight by himself to teach him a lesson or try to transform and help him. Being in vehicle mode game him some advantage because nobody knew it was him because of the earth mode he scanned but ht knew they would find out eventually. _And if I don't help him and Megatron finds out, which he will because Oil Slick will most likely tell him, I will only get into worse trouble. _

Something smacked into his hood. He yelped and backed up, only to have his back tires climb onto Bulkhead's feet. He'd totally forgotten about the other robot. Instantly he roared his engines and tried to get away. But Bulkhead grabbed his back bumper. "You're not going anywhere," the giant green robot stated, pulling him back.

"Let me go, you fat buffoon!" Barricade ordered, his tires squealing as he attempted to escape the robots grasp.

"And what are you going to do if I don't?"

and there lied the question. What could he do? He was helpless in vehicle mode. All he could do was run his tires and make a lot of noise. _I need to transform. _he realized. _Now! But how? Thanks to Oil Slick I'm stuck. Pit forsaken cyber ninja! _

Bulkhead pulled on his bumper again. "Well? I'm waiting."

Well Barricade didn't want to keep the big oaf waiting, now did he? _I guess I have no choice. I have to try again. _

Bulkhead heard the signature sound of transforming. He stared at the police car that seemed to be doing it in slow motion. _Huh?_

Well it was hard but the former autobot police officer pulled it off. He finished transforming though it took awhile and glared at Bulkhead who looked somewhat confused. "Why did it take you so long?" he asked.

Barricade smirked. "Like I would tell you." he raised his gun. 'But even if I wanted to I couldn't because you're going to be without a head very soon." he fired.

But the energy bolt didn't hit the robot where he wanted it to. It went long and grazed Bulkhead's shoulder. He yelped in pain and swung out, hitting Barricade square in the chin. the black robot was rocketed into the air and landed heavily on the ground, the force of the impact cracking the pavement.

_A/N_

_This chapter took awhile because I have writers block. Because the block has been bigger recently updates for this fic will take longer than they used to. Since I started it in June I've kind of lost track of where I was going. :( This makes me sad. If my Internet hadn't been out for those two months this fic might have gone in a completely different direction but no thanks to that updates were always a week apart. But I promise you I will finish this story even if it takes me ten years. I don't like leaving things undone and I don't intend to let this one become an undead fic. _


	30. Chapter 30

CHAPTER 30

Prowl could feel Perceptor's optics lock onto him as he ran around the scientist in a wide circle. He dived to the side when the Autobot tried to grab him, did a roll, and got up without losing his momentume or balance. His eyes were focused on a cleaning drone that seemed to have forgotten where it was supposed to go and was leaning against the wall. If he could just get to it and touch it...

The sound of Perceptor's heavy footsteps brought him out of his thoughts. He looked over his shoulder. The scientist was coming after him, ignoring Sari who by then had gotten out of the building and to safety. He hoped she'd keep running until she was clear of the building. He took his eyes off the robot and continued on his course. The drone was still too far away. He wasn't going to get to it before his pursuer got to him!

_No, I won't allow that! I have to get there!_

**"Give up, Prowl, you won't get away from me this time."**

The cyber ninja techno organic didn't look back, he could sense the scientist reaching out to grab him up. _Not this time, professor. You don't have a bounty hunter to help you this time. _

He pushed off the floor with his foot and threw himself forward. When he did Perceptor tried to grab him but missed. The techno organic cyber ninja landed in front of the drone. He got up quickly and lunged at it, resting his hand on the metal of the simple machine. Instantly everything inside it filled his mind and he became one with it. _Yes!_

Keeping his hand on the machine to not lose the link, he climbed up onto the top and grasped the power switch with both hands. He closed his eyes and concentrated. _Okay, drone, let's see what you can do. _

0000

Barricade's entire frame screamed in agony as he forced himself to get up and face Bulkhead. _Sparks! This guy hits harder than I thought! _

"You want more, Decepticon?" Bulkhead asked, swinging his weapon. "Why don't you just stay down?"

The police-bot laughed. "Does that order ever work?" he asked him. "Because if it did the stockades would be full by now and I can assure you that they are not."

"How would you know that?"

Barricade smirked. "Because I used to work there," then he charged at the much bigger robot, swinging a punch that took Bulkhead under the chin. He heard something crunch then the robot was falling back. While he did so Barricade kicked him in the chest, sending the Autobot hurdling across the parking lot until he crashed headlong into the wall of the tower.

Meanwhile Oil Slick was having some trouble. He just couldn't seem to take keep both of the Autobots in his sights. If he focused on one the other would sneak behind him and it was usually that annoying yellow one. He would have to deal with him first.

The next time Bumblebee tried to get behind him Oil Slick spun around and threw a canister of fear gas at the younger robot. Bee saw it coming and scurried out of the way. The canister hit the ground and exploded but there was nothing there to breath it in so it was useless.

"I see you're still using the same methode, Oil Slick," Ratchet commented.

The cyber ninja grinned at him. "Why drop something I'm good at?" he asked, dodging sideways when Bee tried to hit him with his stingers. "I see you're still a medic. I guess life wasn't too good for you if you still have the same profession."

"At least my profession is honest."

Oil Slick laughed. "An honest Autobot? That's sort of an oxymoron coming from you."

"Shut up!" Ratchet tried to activate his magnets but the cyber ninja threw his weapon at him, the chain wrapping around his wrists. Oil Slick pulled on it, yanking the medic forward off balance until he slammed stomach first onto the ground. "I honestly don't believe that, Ratchet," he said, realing the medic in. "Not after everything you and the others did. If you had just admitted you were in the wrong I might have actually stayed where I was without having to worry about false accusations."

"False accusations?" Ratchet exclaimed, trying to get his feet under himself. "Don't play the marter here. We both know what you did wasn't legal."

"Half the stuff Perceptor does isn't exactly legal either but you never said anything to him about it." he made a face. "at least I never tried to create vampires."

"Vampires? What are you talking about?"

But before Oil Slick could answer a yellow and black compact car slammed into him, knocking him over and causing the chemist to loosen his grip on the chain. Ratchet easily freed his hands and got up, charging over to the ninja and punching him square in the face, breaking the glass bubble protecting it.

Oil Slick let out a yelp and stepped back, holding his sore face. That old geasure sure could hit hard. _I forgot about that. _

Ratchet came at him again, scoring blow after blow. The Decepticon Cyber ninja was unable to defend himself properly. Suddenly he was hit from behind and knocked to the pavement. He landed on his stomach. When he started to get up he found the two Autobots looming over him. "Just stay down, Decepticreep," the medic told him. "You'll only sustain more damage if you don't."

Oil Slick glared up at them hatefully. "Don't think I'm going to give up so easily," he growled. 'This isn't over."

"Sure looks like it is to me," Bee responded.

The ninja smirked. "Then you, kid, have a lot to learn."

At that moment both bots were hit from behind by a plasma rifle. Taken totally by surprise neither could prevent it. They crashed to the ground with loud bangs. Oil Slick looked up and spotted the shooter. "It's about time," he said, sounding both irritated and relieved.

"I didn't take my time on purpose," a voice said as heavy footfalls came toward the fallen Autobots. "I had to deal with their big friend over there."

"Excuses, excuses." the chemist grumbled, shaking his head. "Just admit you're still not ready for this yet."

"Don't give me that, bubble head," the speaker shot back. "Megatron didn't want us to engage them anyway and once we get back to the base I'm going to tell him what you did."

"You would, youldn't you?" Oil Slick got up and glared at his comrade. "I should expect nothing less from an Autobot."

Bee's optics widened and he stared at Ratchet who had equally widened optics. "Autobot?" he said.

Just then the speaker came into view and both Autbot's got a good look at him. He was a black and white machine who was a few feet taller than Oil Slick. Ratchet noticed the long damage scar on his chest where his insignia should be. The transformer looked down at them with purple tinted blue optics. He looked sad, almost as if he felt sorry for them. "I'm just following orders," he replied, not taking his otics off the two Autobot's. "I have to tell him what you did."

"I dare you to try," Oil Slick sneered. "If you do I'll tell him it was your idea."

The black and white robot looked at the cyber ninja. "If you try you'll regret it," he retorted. "and he will know right away you are lying. I wouldn't do something like this for no reason."

"Such sentiment from a murderer," Oil Slick responded, folding his arms.

A stab. "I might be a murderer but I'm not a liar," he said, turning away. "If I don't let him know about this he'll find out anyway and I don't even want to begin to think of what he will do when that happens."

"So then go ahead and tell him," Oil Slick dared. He looked back at the Autobots. "and while you're doing that I think I'll deal with these two."

"Leave them alone. You'll only make it worse."

"How would I make it worse?" he demanded. "I mean Megatron wanted us to find out what they are doing." he graped his chain weapon in both hands. "I'm only going to follow orders."

0000

Sari didn't realize she was alone until she exited the building and turned back to see if Prowl had followed her. He hadn't which meant he was still inside. _I hope he'll be okay, _she thought, starting at the building with a worried expression on her face. _I hope he beats that scientist within an inch of his life. That'll teach him to try to disecct us like frogs. _

But as time passed and the techno organic cyber ninja didn't exit the building her worry turned into dread.

000

Prowl wasn't exactly sure what he was going to do with this thing. It was a cleaning drone after all. It didn't have any weapons built into it. But that didn't matter that much. As he used it to get closer to Perceptor, a germ of an idea formed in his mind. He wasn't even sure if it would work but it had to. If it didn't...

_Don't think about it, _he told himself. _It's better to just let things play out and worry about the ending later. _

But how was it going to end? _I'm not going back to the lab, that's how it's going to end!_

The techno organic cyber ninja was nearly upon Perceptor when he suddenly released his control on the drone. Pushing off of it with his foot he fell back, landing unsteadily on his feet. The drone, which he'd left on, kept going until it slammed into Perceptor knocking him back until they both crashed into the wall. The scientist struggled to free himself.

Now that he was distracted Prowl turned away and dashed out of the building. Hopefully Sari had listened to him and put some distance between herself and the place. But the second he stepped outside he slammed right into the girl who'd decided to go back in. They fell to the permacreet.

"Ow!" the girl excliamed, rubbing her rear end.

"Sari!" he exclaimed, his eyes widening under the blue tinted glasses. "What are you still doing here? I told you to run."

"I'm fine, thanks for asking," she said sarcastically.

The cyber ninja got up and grabbed her hand, pulling her to her feet. "Why didn't you run?"

"Because I was worried about you," she replied, brushing herself off. "When you didn't come out I thought Percy positive got you!"

"Well he didn't get me," the cyber ninja replied, folding his arms. "But he might if we stick around much longer. He grabbed her arm. "Let's get out of here."

000

Barricade frowned. Oil Slick seemed intent on causing more trouble. If he kept this up the whole plan would be ruined. But what could the police-bot do? If he tried to stop him Oil Slick would tell Megatron and make it seem as if he was betraying him. But if he didn't stop Oil Slick they would both get into trouble anyway for disobeying orders about keeping a low profile. It was a lose lose situation for him.

"I know you," Ratchet said suddenly. Barricade stared down at the medic as Oil Slick wrapped a thick set of chains around his wrists. "You're Barricade. That Autobot traitor who killed his own comrades and released Megatron from his confinement."

Bumblebee stared. "What?" he exclaimed.

"It's true," Barricade said, kneling down and looking the yellow robor square in the face. "I did kill those Autobots and let Megatron out." a strange, mad grin crossed his features. "and I can't say I feel bad about it."

"You glitch!" Bee screamed, trying to lunge at him. Oil Slick Punched him to the ground. "How could you do that to your own comrades?"

"It wasn't hard. They were in my way. I had no choice."

"You did so have a choice!" Bee shouted as the cyber ninja held him down. 'You could have said no! You could have chosen not to-"

"What do you know about it?" Barricade demanded, cutting him off. "You know nothing! Absolutely nothing!"

"I know you're a dirty traitor and a moron."

The police-bot growled, his hands clenching into fists. Who did this little punk think he was? The ex-autobot reached down and grabbed Bumblebee by the throat, lifting him easily off the ground. "Dare you judge me?" he growled. "Dare you think you can make assumptions about me and what I've done? You don't know what I've been through or had to deal with. Unless you've gone through what I have you keep your trap shut!"

Suddenly all four machines heard the sound of something cracking. They looked toward the tower as one and spotted Bulkhead who'd finally gotten back up. He was coming toward them, yelling. "Take your hands off him, Decepticon!"

"Looks like you didn't deal with the big one properly after all," Oil Slick commented, smirking.

"Shut up!" barricade snapped. "If you think you can do better _you _take care of him."

The cyber ninja's face lit up with wicked glee. "I shall." he said before turning an rushing at the bigger robot.

000

Perceptor had a hard time freeing himself from under the cleaning drone. By the time he did and exited the building both techno-organics were gone. Had he decided to keep his emotions he might have cursed at that very moment but instead he simply exited the building and moved down the street. They were small but that didn't mean they were invisible. He would be able to find them easily if he didn't rush.

But why should he rush? He had plenty of time. He would find them soon enough.

After all, they couldn't exactly get very far with such short legs and they stood out more than a black blot of ink on a white blanket.

_I know you're still here somewhere, _he thought as he walked down the street, scanning everything for strange annomolies. _You can't leave the planet._

_000_

Prowl and Sari moved through the crowded streets, doing their best to avoid being stepped on by the giant robors milling around. Because of their size nobody really noticed them all that much, which was actually a very good thing. If anyone had there would be a mass stampede and the two techno organics would have to try to keep themselves from being killed.

_The irony, _Prowl thought feeling tempted to roll his eyes.

He felt a tug on his hand and looked back at Sari. The girl had stopped moving which forced him to do the same. He stood still and turned to face her, but did not let go of her hand for fear that if he did thery would wind up being separated. "Sari?" he asked. "What's wrong?"

The girl moved closer to him to avoid being stepped on as a red and orange fembot walked past. "We need to get off the planet," she told him. "If we can find a space bridge we can take it back to Earth and get away from that nutcase scientist."

The only problem with that was the space bridges were offline for the time being plus neither of them knew where to find one. When he told her this she said. "I think I might know where one is."

Prowl gave her a look. "Oh really?" he asked.

She nodded and pulled on his hand. "This way."

He didn't believe her but her allowed her to lead him down the sidewalk anyway.

000

Bulkhead might have been big but he was also fast. When Oil Slick tried to rush at him the bigger robot easily moved out of the way and slammed his fist into the smaller machine as he passed by. The Decepticon cyber ninja slammed into the wall of Sumdac tower.

From where he stood, Barricade watched all of this without much of a reaction. Part of him was temped to assit but the other part held back. He still had to deal with two other Autobots who were currently out of commision but that didn't mean anything. They could get up at any moment. It wasn't like they had stasis cuffs on to make them behave.

_Would it matter anyway? _

Who knew?

Suddenly he felt a pain in his ankle. The black robot let out a yelp and backed away from the fallen Autobots. He looked down at Bumblebee whose left hand had changed into one of his stingers. It was shooting off yellow sparks that were focused soley on Barricade's feet.

"Stop that, you little brat," he growled, moving further away from the eletricity.

"Make me," the younger machine shot back.

Barricade hesitated. While part of him would have loved to blast Bumblebee's head off right at that moment another part held him back. Maybe he was still thinking like an Autobot? Well none of that really mattered anymore. He'd already made his choice and it would be best if he started acting like his new alliance.

"You want me to make you punk?" the black transformer asked, aiming his gun at B umblebee's head. "Fine I will! Say hello to Primus for me!"

He fired.

0000

Sari led Prowl through the streets of Iacon as if she had lived there her entire life. He wasn't sure how she was able to pull that off and didn't ask. Most likely it was one of the many skills she'd aquired once she'd upgraded herself. Sometimes her powers made him uncomfortable. To him it seemed like she knew too much for her own good.

But then again he wasn't exactly one to talk. Ever since he got his new body he'd gained some new abilities he hadn't had as a transformer.

While some of the abilities were welcomed other were not and he still wasn't sure he'd totally get used to his new body. Which lead to another question he meant to ask a long time ago but never did. Why had he been brought back to begin with and why in this body? What was the point? What kind of reason could there be for it? He didn't know and he didn't have any clue on who to ask.

Of course that wasn't important right now. What was important was getting back home before Perceptor caught up with them and did who knows what to their bodies in the name of 'SCIENCE".

He was brought out of his thoughts by a tugging on his arm. Prowl looked down and saw Sari was holding onto his arm with both hands. Her eyes met his. "I think I found one," she said to him, tugging once more. "Come on, Prowl."

_A/N_

_I apologize for taking so long to update this thing but I haven't really had very many ideas for it lately. _


End file.
